8 Days of Christmas Group Chllge Complete
by Christmas Candy
Summary: 8 Days of Christmas! It's all in the title.
1. Chapter 1

**Title : How to be a stonewall**  
Couple: M/M  
Genre : ficlet, gapfiller  
Rating : R/ NC 17   
Summary : Michael can't sleep, and Christmas is coming to town. (season 1, the first MM Christmas we never got to see on the show; set between The Balance and Toy House)

Contact Info:   
Disclaimer: I don't own Roswell or the characters of Michael Guerin or Maria Deluca. They belong to Katims, Metz, the WB, UPN, and possibly the CW. What a shame, can I have at least Michael?

**Prologue **

It was getting cold at night. After the freak heat wave broke the temperatures had dropped rather quickly. The nights had become freezing within days. Michael shivered slightly, pulling his leather coat closer around himself. He hadn't been able to sleep for three days in a row, so he had decided to come here. The desert calmed him, helped him think. He had spent many nights out here thinking about his screwed up life, pondering the reason why he was on this planet and dreaming of things that might be "out there" for him. The presence of the stars that were clearly visible in those cold clear nights made him feel closer to "home" if you could call it that, closer to the people who had sent him here, closer to the answers to all the questions he had about his existence.

But tonight he wasn't thinking of distant planets, he was thinking of her. He knew he had hurt her, but it was for the best.

_Sorry, I can't get this involved. I'm alone, and that's the way it's gotta be. Maybe we should've never started this. _

The look on her face when he had said that had broken his heart.

_I'm gonna go outside and get some air._

It had taken him all his will power not to go after her. He had wanted to take her in his arms and kiss it better, but … it was for the best. Definitely for the best, he was sure of it. Even if it hurt like hell.

He hadn't been able to sleep that night. Now, of course there had been this minor problem of Liz and Alex being arrested by Valenti. But it had turned out all right. Another human in on the secret, but that was a small price to pay if it meant that their secret was safe a little longer. They should have never have told anyone to begin with, but since he could not change that now he found himself getting better at accepting it.

Now, of course she would have never noticed him if it hadn't been for her best friend being healed by Max. Not that he would have been interested in her either. Humans had never been important to Michael. Not his foster father, not his schoolmates, he had always avoided getting attached to humans. Their trip to Marathon, Texas, had changed that.

_You're telling me to get out? This is my car. Actually, it's my mother's car, and if anything happens to it, life as I know it will be over. So, wherever it goes, I go._

He had felt it right then, that she was different. And she had proven his feeling right when she had saved his ass from the cop who had stopped him for speeding. She had guts, she was a quick thinker, and she wasn't one to judge you before she knew all the facts. Right then he had felt that he might be falling for her, and he had done everything in his power to prevent it.

When the car had broken down and they had had to check into that cheap motel he had been pissed that he would have to spend the night in the same room with her. The fact that she had looked so lost and weary had made him even angrier. She had made him feel guilty, and he didn't like feeling guilty, not because of her or any other human for that matter. He had ended up buying various snacks from a vending machine to make up for it – but of course he would have done that anyway. He was a growing boy, so he was always hungry.

Then she had started again with that stupid survey of hers. Something about history class, not that he had been interested. So he had agreed to answer the questions because they had had nothing better to do anyway. But then she had started to ask him about personal matters. None of her business, really. And if he had not felt he owed her for saving his ass from the cop and if he had not still felt guilty for kidnapping her, he would probably not even answered that one question.

_Why is it so important to you to find out where you come from?_

_Because there's gotta be something better out there for me than Roswell, New Mexico._

The story of his life. With all the crap that had happened to him in the past 10 years, there had to be something out there, something great and meaningful, something that could explain why he was stuck in Roswell with an abusive foster father and a shitload of problems, something that would **take him** away from this life and offer him a better one.

That's when she had told him about her father, about how he had left her when she was a little kid, and about how she had hoped for years that he would come and take her away to an exotic place where she would live like royalty.

_Because, you know...I thought to myself...there's got to be something better out there for me than Roswell, New Mexico._

She had known. She had understood. She had not judged his motives, not told him that he should be more realistic, not pitied him like Max and Isabel sometimes did. She had just accepted his answer and told him that she understood. That is when he had known she was the girl for him, the one he wanted to grow old with. That Maria girl – his Maria girl. But in a way he had known even then that it could never be. She was human, he was alien, he was determined to find a way home and once he did he could not be attached to anything or anyone on earth. She needed to accept that and get on with her life. It was for the best, he was sure of it.

The first kiss had made him almost forget that. They had been waiting for Max and Liz to return from the Indian reservation. She had been nervous, and she had made him nervous, too. Then all of a sudden she had been yelling at him that he was supposed to make her feel better. Women, he would never understand them. How had he been supposed to do that? He had thought about what would release his own tension, and all **he** had been able to come up with was to kiss her. To calm her down, of course. Only, it had not really had a calming effect on him. After Max and Liz had returned, he had spent what felt like hours in the cold shower.

And then that heat wave had hit Roswell. Things had started to spin out of control. The heat had changed how people interacted with each other. Sensual overload. He had felt it in the air, and all he had been able to think about was Maria. He had gone to the Crashdown that night, when he knew she was locking up. No words had been exchanged, it had not been necessary. She had known why he had come, and she had wanted it as much has he had. Kisses and touches were all they had needed to communicate that night.

It had been revealing. He had never had felt like that before, and like an addict he had needed more. They had started meeting in the eraser room almost every break. At first he had ignored the warning signs – the fact that she had greeted him with a fond smile whenever she saw him, her little attempts to talk to him during make out sessions, his own craving for her that made him forget about the dangers of getting too attached. When she had finally addressed their non-talking status, he had crashed back into reality. She had wanted to know about him, to spend time with him – she had wanted relationship, and he had realized that he might want that, too. All his life he had been focused on that one goal – to return "home", wherever that was. He could not let anything or anyone keep him. And he could not have a relationship with her when he knew he was going to leave one day.

_I'm alone, and that's the way it's gotta be. Maybe we should've never started this. _

It was for the best, he was sure of it.

They had started avoiding each other. - Ok, so he had started avoiding her. And then, a couple of days ago he had fallen sick. River Dog had explained it to him. The sweat had disturbed his "balance", and he had needed the help of his friends to heal him. Max and Isabel had been there, as they usually were when he was in trouble. His brother and sister – the only people in the world he could truly call his family. Alex had been there, much to his surprise, and even little Liz Parker, who Max had lately been so distracted by. But most importantly Maria had been there, too. After all he had said to her she had still wanted to be there for him. She had cared, no matter what. And he had been surprised at how much that had meant to him.

Michael shivered again when the wind picked up. What he had seen while in his delirium had confirmed what he had felt for some time now: that he was getting closer to finding out where they really came from. He knew that he should be more excited, that he should spend his days figuring out the symbols on the map. But for some reason he could not quite focus on the task at hand. His mind was occupied with other thoughts. Thoughts of her.

For three days now she had avoided him in school. She wasn't talking to him, and whenever he tried to make conversation she turned around and left. And whenever he saw her she looked tired and unhappy. For three days thinking about her had kept him awake. It was driving him insane. Christmas was coming up, and although he did not care much about that himself, he wanted her to enjoy the holidays. Of course she could never know that he cared – it was too dangerous. But he needed to do something to make the dark circles around her eyes disappear and put a smile on her lovely lips. He loved it when she smiled. If he could see her smile for Christmas that would make the holidays and all the crap Hank usually dished out around that time much more bearable. He needed to do something, but what? Would he ever understand women? What could she possibly want that didn't involve him bearing his soul to her and turning into a romantic fool like Max?

Michael smiled at his own desperation. He would think of something. All he needed to do was watch her closely and maybe listen in on some of her conversations with Liz. It was for a good cause, after all, so it wasn't like a violation of her privacy, really. Getting up from the rock he was sitting on he started to work the details of his plan out in his mind. Slowly he walked back to the trailer park. Tonight he would probably finally get some sleep.

**Chapter 1: **

Her hand barely touched his chest. Her fingers slowly made their way down towards his groin, and although her touch was light and feathery it burned his skin. She started to move on top of him, an almost unbearably slow rhythm at first, giving him time to muse about the lusciousness of her lips, the creamy perfection of her skin and the surprisingly arousing feel of her pert little breasts. He had always been attracted by curvy women, but none of them compared to the beauty that was Maria. Her movements slowly became faster and more frantic, the light touch of her fingers turning into a feverish clutch as she seemed to hold on for dear life. She threw her head back and moaned, an almost animalistic sound that cost Michael the last bit of control he had left. With a groan his hands moved from where they rested on her thighs up to her hips to guide her up and down his ….

Michael woke with a start, drenched in sweat and painfully hard. Great! Another wet dream featuring Maria DeLuca. This was becoming a serious issue. Michael wiped his hand over his face, weighing his options. He could go and take a cold shower, but that would probably wake Hank. The trailer didn't exactly give you any privacy – Michael shuddered when he remembered listening to Hank and some woman going at it in the other room. Thank god that didn't happen a lot anymore.

The other option was to act like a healthy, horny male teenager and jerk off to the fantasy of "this hot girl from school". But that didn't seem right. She wasn't just anyone, and knowing Hank slept in the other room, Michael almost felt dirty jerking off thinking about Maria. But then, she wasn't some delicate flower, she was a strong-headed, passionate girl who knew what she wanted from a guy. If sleeping with her was anything like in his dreams, he missed out on the probably most spectacular sex in the know universe. Michael started to stroke himself trying to remember the fleeting images of his numerous erotic dreams about her. Recalling the way her nipples hardened when he touched them in his dreams, remembering the way she looked with her head thrown back in passion, almost hearing her low cries of ecstasy he shuddered and came silently. Panting hard he resolved to do something about these fantasies, and soon. If he wanted to get over her, this needed to stop.

Michael followed Maria to the Crashdown. He kept his distance so he could be sure she did not notice him. Once she was inside, he walked to the back entrance and sneaked in. He heard her rummage around in her locker and quickly hid behind the stairs that led upstairs. Maria had already changed into her uniform and was looking for the pair of comfortable shoes she kept in the locker for work. She finally found them and was about to put them on when Liz entered the back room.

"Maria, oh, good to see you. You are late, we were kind of worried. Are you ok?"

"Sure, peachy," Maria stated absentmindedly while she put on the second shoe.

Liz furrowed her brows. "Is really everything ok? You have been behaving … weird lately. I am really worried, Maria. You are my best friend. We tell each other everything… don't we?"

Maria stopped fumbling with her uniform, then suddenly turned around and flung herself at Liz. "I don't know what to do, Liz. I can't really sleep, I couldn't care less about food, I get up in the morning wondering how to get through the day … I am pathetic, Liz, absolutely, utterly, completely pathetic. Look at me, I am a wreck."

"Oh, come here," Liz hugged Maria tightly. "We'll find a solution."

Maria's expression changed. She straightened herself, taking a deep breath. "No man is worth this, Liz, alien or not. You and me, Liz, we will stick together and show them that we don't need them. If they cannot appreciate us, they don't deserve us."

Michael smiled at that. He admired her strength, and he loved her spite. Besides, she was cute when she was angry. Michael shook his head. These kinds of thoughts were getting him nowhere. He had to stop thinking about whether she was cute or not. He needed to find a way to make her smile for Christmas so he could rest in peace and be a stonewall again without feeling guilty about the way he **had** treated her.

"So, what do we do?" Liz smiled. She was excited to see Maria so resolved. Maybe Christmas wouldn't be so sad for her after all.

"We do what we want, without thinking about them. Ever! First thing, we go Christmas shopping. I have seen this gorgeous sweater at Suzie's … "

Liz laughed, and the two of them entered the dining area, chatting about plans for shopping and going to the movies. Michael cursed lightly under his breath. Not exactly what he had hoped for. And he was running out of time.

Michael waited another two minutes to be sure no one was around. He was about to leave his hideout behind the stairs when the door to the diner opened again and Maria and Liz came back.

"Maria, what was that?" Liz asked, smiling at Maria.

"What?" Maria looked a little too innocently at Liz.

"You were shamelessly flirting with Harvey Wechsler."

"So? I am free to flirt with whomever I want. It's not as if I have a boyfriend, or even a guy who cares with whom I'm flirting."

Liz looked uncomfortable. "I don't think it's such a good idea to just throw yourself into another … whether it is with a guy you don't even really know. I mean, sure, Harvey is a nice guy, but you are not doing this because you like him."

Maria crossed her arms in front of her. "So?"

"It isn't exactly fair, Maria."

"Life isn't fair. Is it fair that I care about a guy who at one moment kisses me like there is no tomorrow and the next moment has completely forgotten about me? Liz, he didn't even notice I was there in the cave."

Michael furrowed a brow. He had assumed that they had been there with him on the dream plane. Not at first, of course, not when he had had the visions of the signs and what they meant, but when they had appeared in his vision … he had thought they had seen that part of his vision, too, that they would remember hugging, or in her case kissing him. But obviously they hadn't. That explained a lot. Just great, he had thought she had accepted his decision and just felt sad about it, now he knew she felt he had only used her. Could his life get any more complicated?

Maria and Liz returned to work, leaving Michael to ponder his next move. After he had made sure they were gone, he moved out from behind the stairs and left quietly through the back door.

Michael had been wandering around aimlessly for almost an hour, trying to come up with a plan to make Maria happy without telling her how he felt about her. So she felt used, how could he make up for that? She needed to feel cherished, loved and appreciated. She had said so herself.

_If they cannot appreciate us, they don't deserve us._

But how could that be achieved? How could he make her feel this way without her knowing that he was involved? Michael stopped dead in his tracks when he realized where his feet had taken him. He was standing across the street from Maria's house. The lights were on, and he saw movement in her room. He stepped closer, making sure he stayed in the shadows so that she would not see him. When he was almost in front of her window he heard music coming through the **window, which** she had left slightly ajar. She was singing, and her full, slightly rough voice had him mesmerized for a second. Typical, just when he thought he knew all about her she surprised him again. He had known she was interested in music, but many teenagers were, so he had not listened to her ramblings. Turned out that it was obviously more than a teenage obsession. She was good, and her voice almost made him regret breaking up with her all over again. It is for the best, he assured himself.

That's when it hit him. Maria loved music, and from what he heard her music was one of her many great assets that were more than worth to be appreciated. And he knew just the right place where her beautiful music would be cherished. He lingered a little longer listening to her rehearsing a couple of Christmas songs that she was probably going to perform with a group of carol singers during the holidays, before he slowly walked back into the direction of the trailer park.

**Chapter 2: **

"Michael! What a surprise to see you! Why don't you sit down."

Mrs. Winston had always been the only grown person he could stand in this place. Mind you, they had all tried to befriend him, but he had had the feeling that she was the only one in here who really meant what she said, who really cared about him and didn't just do her job.

Not that he had made it easy for her. She probably didn't even know that he kind of liked her, at least he had tried to never let on that he did. Even ten years ago he had know that he was alone and that he could only ever trust himself.

Michael gave her an awkward smirk. "Mrs. Winston, I have a favour to ask you."

Her smile faded, and Michael winced. She probably thought he had done something illegal and needed someone to help him out of trouble. It was weird how even the nicest people treated you not according to what they knew about you as a person, but also according to where you came from. Having lived on the wrong side of the tracks for the past ten years with his sorry excuse of a foster father, Michael experienced a lot of that - that mixture of pity and fear that he might at any time do something dangerous. That was exactly why he never trusted adults. He was getting angry, but he realized that in this case he needed her. So he reluctantly tried to dispel her fears. "Nothing big really, it is for a friend, and you will benefit greatly from it, too."

Mrs. Winston's smile returned, and she nodded encouragingly.

"You know, Mrs. Winston, I have this friend, who is a really great musician …"

Maria flung her bag across the room and kicked her shoes off her feet. Her day had sucked, big time. She had failed her remedial science exam – again –, she had been insulted by a rude customer, and then she had had to cover for Tracy who had called in sick. Maria plopped on the bed and closed her eyes. All she wanted was a hot shower, a nice cup of tea, and 10 hours of sleep. She was just pondering whether or not she really needed that cup of tea, when her mother walked into her room.

"Maria, honey, you got mail."

Maria groaned. The last thing she wanted to do right now was to open her eyes to read a letter. "Who is it from?" she finally asked reluctantly.

"That is the weirdest thing," Amy said. "It's from the orphanage."

That got Maria's attention. Why would the orphanage send her a letter? It couldn't be for charity, since she wasn't on the list of local shop owners or people who generally gave to charity. "You sure it isn't for you? You are the local entrepreneur."

"It specifically says 'Maria DeLuca', so I didn't open it. If it is for me, let me know, honey, ok?" With this, Amy dropped the letter on the bed and left the room.

Maria groaned again, but sat up and eyed the letter. It was probably for her mother anyway. Maria ripped open the envelope, pulled out a neatly folded sheet of paper and started reading …

"Oh my god!"

Amy came running back into the room at that. "Maria, what is it? Is everything ok?"

Maria had a huge smile plastered on her face. "Great mom, I'm great! Look at this!"

**Chapter 3:**

Michael was standing outside the window of the great hall of the orphanage. The hall was lighted with hundreds of little electric light bulbs that were attached to the huge Christmas tree and the wall decorations around the room. He heard her soft but strong voice singing.

Peace on earth and mercy mild  
God and sinners reconciled  
Joyful, all ye nations rise  
Join the triumph of the skies  
With the angelic host proclaim:  
"Christ is born in Bethlehem"  
Hark! The herald angels sing  
"Glory to the newborn King!"

The children sitting around her seemed to be transfixed by her beautiful voice. Some of the older ones were silently moving their lips, not daring to join into the singing. Others rocked slowly back and forth with the rhythm of the music. Some even had their eyes closed, listening intently, almost as if making sure they didn't miss a single note. Michael was mesmerized by the scene. The soft light, the bright eyes of the children, and Maria, singing, her eyes closed, a soft smile on her lips. Michael doubted that he had ever seen anything more beautiful. Or touching. He swallowed and wiped a single tear off his cheek, slightly embarrassed and happy no one could see him right now. Wuss, so much for being a stonewall.

The song had ended, and Maria was gathering the children closer around. She said something to them, and many of the kids clapped their hands or bounced up and down excitedly. Maria gave them a tune and started singing again, and this time the children joined in. They didn't really carry the tune, and most of them did not quite remember the correct lyrics, but that made the song all the more cheerful. Maria laughed, when a little boy gave a particularly unruly interpretation of one of the lines, and Michael smiled. He had seen enough. Maria was happy, at least for now, and that was all he had wanted for her. Staying here watching her meant only making this harder on himself. With a last look he turned around and walked away from the orphanage.

Slowly he made his way back into town. Isabel, the Christmas Nazi, had bullied him into joining the maintenance crew of the Christmas village, but he didn't really mind, having nothing better to do on Christmas Eve anyway. Besides, Hank was a particular kind of nasty around Christmas. If he didn't find a woman to bed in some bar, he usually came home drunk and looking for someone to take his frustration out on. Michael had learned pretty early to avoid Hank at Christmas, so the Christmas Village was indeed a welcome way of keeping away from his foster father. Of course he had complained loudly for days. Couldn't have Isabel think he was easy. He had a reputation to uphold, after all.

Days later…

Christmas had gone by in a blur. Michael had even managed to avoid Hank for a whole three days. Mrs. Winston had contacted him to thank him for suggesting Maria perform at the orphanage at Christmas, letting him know that the children had been talking about it for days after and that they hoped very much Maria would return the next year. After years of spending Christmas in the cold desert watching the stars Michael had a feeling things were looking up. Maybe life on Earth would become bearable after all, at least as long as they were stuck here. Michael was still as resolved as ever about finding his home planet and returning to those who had sent them here. There had to be an explanation, a great and important reason that would justify all those years **he had spent** hating his life on Earth. But maybe waiting for that reason to reveal itself wouldn't be such a bad thing, after all.

He walked down the corridor, thinking about what game was on tonight. Hank was gone for a couple of days, and Michael planned on watching as much TV as possible. He rounded a corner and bumped into Maria. She looked better, healthier, and stronger.

"Hey," he said.

"Hey," she responded avoiding his eyes and trying to move around him.

"How's it going?"

She still didn't look at him. "Fine," she said, finally pushing past him and walking away briskly.

Michael looked after her and scratched his brow. Well, she did look good, delicious to be honest, and he had been tempted to suggest a trip to the **eraser** room. He missed her, and the fact that he still had the most vivid dreams about her didn't help. Unfortunately, she obviously wanted nothing to do with him. Just as he had wanted it. But then, why the hell did her obviously avoiding him feel like he had just been slapped in the face. Hard. Michael sighed, then shook his head and went on to his next class. He would get over it, eventually. It was for the best, after all. He was sure of it. If only it didn't hurt so much.

**Epilogue:**

Michael was watching the stars. The night was cold and he shivered. He hadn't been able to sleep. Again. Three days in a row he had been lying awake, thinking about why he couldn't sleep. And somehow, her face had always come to his mind. Now, the insomnia was already taking a toll on him. Not only did it deprive him of the most incredible wet dreams he had ever had in his life, it also made him impulsive, rude and grumpy. Well, more than usual. Three days of not sleeping and pissing everyone around him off, and he found himself in the desert, looking at the stars, as he often did when the questions about his existence were most pressing. Only, he was not thinking about "home", wherever that may be. He was thinking about her again. Michael closed his eyes and smiled at the irony of it. He recognized a pattern, and he didn't like that at all.

Making her happy for Christmas had helped against his last bout of insomnia, so maybe he should try to actively do something about it this time, too. The problem was that those sleepless nights were due to the fact that he missed Maria. Now, getting back together with her was of course out of the question. He needed to be a stonewall, and she had a tendency to deconstruct his carefully built bulwark. But on the other hand he didn't see himself getting over her anytime soon, and he doubted that friendship was the right way to go about it for the two of them. Personally, he felt like pressing her against the next wall and devouring her mouth whenever he saw her, so that wouldn't work. Maybe, if she at least could stop hating him, if she could look at him again when they met, if she could speak more than two words to him in a row. Hell, if they could at least fight once in a while. It would be some awkward thing between non-friendship and non-relationship, but at least it would be something.

The questions was, how? He didn't really know why she behaved the way she did. Ok, so he had broken up with her, but she had at least talked to him afterwards, even if it was only to fight with him. But she had stopped yelling at him or insulting him after he had fallen sick. She had been right there to help him through it, she had kissed him in his vision, but afterwards she had stopped speaking to him completely and started avoiding him like the plague. He needed to find out, where she came from, and soon, because not sleeping and instead thinking about her all night was driving him insane.

Ok, so that was his next project. Michael smiled. Worked every time. He felt tired and he was sure, with yet another plan involving Maria he would get some sleep tonight, and if he was lucky maybe even one of those juicy **dreams, which**, of course, had to stop some time soon, but maybe not quite yet.

- The End -

Merry Christmas Everyone!!!


	2. Chapter 2

**Home**

Author: Sanaazzy (Sani)

Rating: NC-17

Stage: first year, Christmas on the run.

Disclaimer: I don't own anything sniffs

One week.

She had been ignoring him for one freaking week.

Michael sighed heavily. He never should've opened his mouth. He didn't even know why he bothered; he had a tendency of putting his foot so far down his mouth that he should really consider never talking.

He sneaked a quick glance at her through the rear-view mirror. She sat on the chair closest to the car door; her body slightly slumped as she stared out the window. God he missed her. It was funny, they saw each other twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week and yet he had never felt so far away from her as he did now.

He hated their situation. He hated that it had gotten this far, that they were running for their lives. But worst of all he hated that he had endangered Maria's life. That being who and what he was, had endangered her life.

She was his responsibility.

It wasn't something they had discussed as a group; it was just one of those things that was official in a very unofficial way.

Maria was his responsibility. Liz was Max's. Kyle was Isabel's. End of story.

Michael pulled his eyes away from her and forced them on the road, not really seeing it. Everyone was quiet and still a little shook up. The last scare a week ago had been too close for comfort.

Unable to resist, Michael sneaked another look at her through the rear-view mirror, only to find her eyes on him. His breath hitched at the sorrow he could see in her eyes. Her bottom lip trembling she turned to look out the window again. Feeling a strong urge to hurt whomever had brought her pain, he cursed, realising that he was probably the cause.

"We're staying in a motel tonight" he announced, his tone of voice booking no argument.

Nobody argued.

Isabel sighed in relief.

He watched Maria for any sign, relief, conflict, - but he got nothing. She just stared out the window, seemingly having not heard.

Seeing an exit coming up, Michael indicated the bus signal and cut through the lanes leaving the freeway.

There was some movement in the bus now. Kyle who was riding shotgun next to him, stretched. He leaned over to reach the car radio and changed the station, increasing the volume.

Max and Liz sat up from where they had been lying on the last seat of the mini-bus.

Isabel leaned closer to Michael. Feeling and hearing the movement, Michael turned to look at her quickly.

"Do you think it's safe?"

He wanted to say no, that they were never going to be safe, but the hopeful and wary look she had in her eyes stopped him. His eyes slid to Maria. Her head was slightly tilted towards them, as if she too were listening and waiting for an answer.

"Yes. We've been on the road for a week; they'll be a big gap between us and them now."

Nobody mentioned which "them" he meant. Whether it was the FBI or the Aliens, they were enemies and that's all everyone cared about.

Michael drove through the dark empty roads of Sacramento, looking for a motel. The heat was getting to him. It was Christmas Eve, and instead of it being freezing cold, like it would be in Roswell – this place was scorching hot.

Kyle let out a low whistle pointing to a decent looking orange and cream building. "Not bad for a motel"

Michael grunted his agreement. He pulled into the "Super 8 motel's" parking lot and parked the mini-bus, stepped out and stretched his long legs. He walked around the bus to where the others were pulling out their bags and stood behind Maria.

"Can we talk?"

"We are talking."

Damn. She was still mad. He had left her alone for a week to cool off and she was still mad.

"Please?"

'_Damn'_, she cursed. She never could resist him. Sighing heavily, she turned to face him.

Michael frowned. "I can't talk to you when you're like this"

"Like what?"

Michael opened his mouth to answer but snapped it shut when Kyle coughed. Rolling her eyes, Maria swung the bag over her shoulder and moved past him.

"Oh baby, come on"

Kyle walked up to him and placed his arm over his shoulder. "So roomy, what'll it be, two queens?"

"In your dreams"

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"What did I do this time?" he spat out the moment she stepped out the bathroom, unable to contain it anymore. The question had been circling his head since she stopped talking to him a week ago.

Maria sighed and looked longingly at the bed. God she was tired. It had been a week since any of them had slept on a bed. Fear of getting caught had kept them constantly on the road, except for gas stops and short freshening up breaks- where they would check into a motel for a couple of hours to shower and freshen up but never sleep.

She pointed at her towel – the only clothing on her. "Do we really have to do this now?"

"If we don't, we never will."

She nodded her acceptance.

"So, what did I do?"

"Why don't you want us to celebrate Christmas?"

Michael's eyes widened. '_Was she serious? She had ignored him for a whole week because he said they shouldn't celebrate Christmas? '_

"We can't afford to celebrate Christmas. We don't have the money"

"It's not all about money."

"You always want some pretty gift. One, that always costs a fortune."

"No I don't."

Michael scoffed, mumbling "I should know. I'm still paying Isabel back."

Maria's eyes widened with realisation and pain. "Is that really all you think of me? Is that really all you think I want?"

"You know I don't. But, it's Christmas Maria; it's a load of crap."

"It's not to me". She cried pushing her fingers through her hair, breathing out roughly. "I don't complain about anything when I have a lot to complain about. Like, how I left everything I have ever known back in Roswell, I left my mom without even a goodbye, Sean too. But do I complain?"

Maria paused. She wanted to stop, she really did, but she was afraid. She knew they were low blows and that he probably thought about them too but she couldn't stop. She had almost lost him when the skins had caught up with them. It was just by luck that he and Kyle had escaped. She wanted to _feel _him. Feel that he was there, alive. She watched as his face hardened and he closed down.

"Is it so hard that just for once we do something normal?"

"I'm not-"

"I wanna go home Michael" her throat tightened at the admission. She was terrified of not knowing where they were going, of what would happen, if he would get tired of her.

"Maria-"

Her body shook with nerves, panic spreading everywhere. "What if they catch up again, what if this time you don't escape? I can't live without you Michael."

Michael's eyes softened. She was so afraid and confused that he could even sense it. He pulled her towards him, his eyes widening when he realised that she was shaking.

"Maria-"

Tears filled her eyes "I can't live without you"

His hands cupped her face, as he looked into her desperate, pleading eyes "You won't have to."

She looked back at him, then without warning fisted her hands in his long hair. She stood on her tip-toes and pulled him down as she claimed his lips, almost brutally. Understanding what she wanted Michael returned the kiss with fervour. She was still shaking and he hated it. He pushed her towards the wall, their lips still connected. His hand travelled down and grabbed her ass, pulling her even closer. Hating the towel, he pulled at the knot and smiled in satisfaction when it opened and slid to the floor, revealing all of her to him. He pulled back from their demanding kiss and let his eyes travel up her body, from her red painted toenails to her open, wanting, needing eyes. God he loved her like this – open.

Maria moaned as he pulled back. She shivered at the intensity of his look as his eyes took all of her in. She fisted her hand in his t-shirt and pulled him in again, her lips covering his. Hating that she always ended up naked while he stayed fully clothed, she tugged at his t-shirt in irritation. A jean-clad thigh slipped in-between her legs and pressed against her and her thoughts scattered. God she hated how he had so much control over her.

She pulled back, placing her hands on his chest to stop him when he leaned in again. Using all her weight, she turned and pushed them so that his back was now leaning on the wall.

A small smug smile lit up her face before his lips crushed hers and his large hand cupped her bare breast. His free hand wrapped around her waist, crushing her to him, he turned them around, trapping her between the wall and himself.

Michael pulled back, grabbing the hem of his t-shirt and heaved it over his head. He felt her hands on his buckle as she pulled it open, popped the button free and unzipped his jeans, letting them slide down his legs and pool around his ankles.

She spun them around, catching him off-guard. His back against the wall his knees slightly bent, she jumped on his lap. His hands on her ass he positioned himself at her entrance, and then thrust upwards, driving home.

She cried out in pleasure.

He moaned a deep guttural sound as he sank in further.

They both froze, the fight for dominance over. This was familiar ground.

Michael pulled out a few inches then slammed back in, she cried out, her savage cry sending tingles of pleasure shooting up and down his spine.

Still inside her, he pushed himself off the wall and carried her the short distance to the bed carefully, the jeans around his ankles constricting his movements. He laid them both down, his bigger body on hers.

His lips crushed hers as his hips pulled out and pushed back in. He grabbed her wrists and pulled them over her head, threading his fingers in hers. His hips flexed and she bucked against him.

She wrapped a leg around his hips and moaned as he drove hard strokes into her.

He wanted to go slow, to make this last, but he couldn't. She had a way of making him loose control.

She jerked her hips, driving herself deeper, harder. He swooped down and took a nipple into his mouth, smiling against her breast when she gasped. He could feel her inner muscles fluttering and clenching around him, milking him. The moment she came, he followed, he couldn't help it. The way she clenched him and her screams and moans were enough to drive him crazy. He rammed into her, filling her with his seed in hot short spurts. Thoroughly spent he collapsed on top of her, still inside her.

God, he loved make-up sex.

He buried his head in her neck and sighed. He loved the feel of her under him. Hell, he liked the feel of her anywhere. He grinned as he recalled the look on her face when he had suggested that they have a quickie in the gas station restroom. He hadn't gotten any for two weeks after that comment.

Maria wrapped her legs around his hips and squeezed tightly, wanting nothing more than to keep him there, inside her.

"Michael" she breathed out wearily.

He pulled back from her neck and levered himself over her.

"Don't ever get caught. Don't ever die." She whispered, lovingly caressing his cheek.

"I'm awfully hard to kill."

"Don't ever leave me"

He smiled. "You're stuck with me."

She looked at him askance, "You promise?"

He pulled out of her, knowing she was tired and wrapped the covers over them, spooning her. "I promise"

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Michael jerked awake as the alarm on his wristwatch flashed and beeped. It was just after midnight.

Maria groaned. "Is it time to go yet?"

He rubbed his eyes, trying to get rid of the sleep wanting to claim him. "No. But I need you awake Maria, five minutes, please."

She nodded her head slowly, her eyes already shut.

Grinning, he planted a kiss on her cheek then slid out of the covers. He walked over to his bag, which he had dropped near the door when they had entered the room.

He fished out the Santa suit that he never returned to Isabel and pulled it on. Adjusting the white beard, he walked over to the bed.

"Ho, ho ho"

"I'm not a ho" she mumbled indignantly, her eyes still closed.

Michael chuckled. "You're my ho" His smile widened when she snorted.

He lay on the bed over the covers and let his beard stroke her cheek.

Maria's eyes snapped open and she looked at him. Her eyes widened and she blinked, and then smiled.

Michael stared. Her smile was magic.

"So, naughty or nice?" she asked her voice slightly hoarse from sleep.

He grinned. "Depends, have you been naughty or nice?

"You tell me"

"I definitely say you deserve a few spankings"

She gasped "Innocent me? But I've been so good and quiet"

"It's always the quiet ones you need to look out for" he pulled back the covers from her and stared at her naked form. "Yes, you definitely deserve to be spanked"

Maria giggled as he climbed on her and claimed her lips, his bigger body on hers, heating her and his tongue paying havoc with her thoughts.

He pulled back suddenly serious. "I know this probably isn't how you imagined it-"

"It's perfect" she interrupted "Thank you"

"Merry Christmas"

"Merry Christmas, Michael

He was there alive, safe and in her arms. She was home. What more could she ask for?

The End.


	3. Chapter 3

**Title : A snowy Candy Christmas**

**Author: ArchAngel1973 (in collaboration with xmag)  
**

**Rating:Teen **

**  
Summary: Christmas with Michael and Maria, 2002 **

Disclaimer: I don't own Roswell or the characters of Michael Guerin or Maria Deluca. They belong to Katims, Metz, the WB, UPN, and possibly the CW. 

**Part 1**

Maria stood at the only window in the apartment that faced south, her solemn gaze scanning the horizon in a vain attempt to see across the border and into the country of her birth. She shifted from one foot to the other, unable to control the restlessness that had descended over her sometime in the past few weeks.

Michael watched her from the doorway, wishing once again that he knew what to say or do to make her feel better. They had been on the run for more than a year now, moving from city to city in an effort to stay ahead of the Special Unit. They hadn't had any communication with the others in months and it had been even longer since they had been in contact with anyone from back home. She did her best to hide the melancholy moods that had recently become more frequent, but he knew about them all the same. He knew she was trying to protect him by hiding her bouts of depression but her efforts in that area were wasted on him.

He cleared his throat after a few minutes, announcing his presence and allowing her to pull herself together so that she could continue her charade. At this point it seemed that it was the only thing he was capable of doing for her, letting her believe that he was in the dark in regards to her feelings. His heart clenched in his chest when she turned to look at him, fake smile already in place, determined to protect him from her misery.

He held his jacket up and motioned at the front door. "I've gotta head out; my shift starts in half an hour."

Maria nodded and he crossed the room, shrugging into his jacket as he went. He stood in front of her, watching her for several moments; his eyes scanned over hair that was now red and eyes that were gray courtesy of colored contact lenses. She would be his Maria regardless of the disguises they were forced to use to hide their physical identities, but he missed the long, dark blonde hair and her piercing green eyes.

Her gaze traveled over him, looking away after just a few moments. She hated the contact lenses that turned his intense, dark brown eyes a ridiculous shade of blue, and combined with hair that was light blonde he looked like someone straight out of Norse mythology. She missed the soft spikes that she used to run her fingers through, and of course, the way it had made him seem even more wild and untamable.

She looked up when his big, calloused hands came up to cradle her face and she forced her emotions under control before she met eyes that were so familiar and yet so strange at the same time. "You'd better get going," she said finally. "You don't wanna be late."

Michael nodded and lowered his head to kiss her, knowing before their lips touched that she would keep it brief to avoid any possibility of him picking up on her emotions. He didn't call her on it, respecting her wishes, and a few minutes later he was hurrying along the snow-dusted sidewalks on his way to work.

Christmas was right around the corner and he knew that being so far away from her mother and Liz was a big part of the reason for Maria's recent moods. He worried about the affect the extended separation was having on her and while he knew part of it was due to the loss of contact with her mother and her best friend, he was certain that the time of year that was upon them was also part of it.

He had to push the thoughts to the back of his mind as the Mason Logging Company & Sawmill came into sight and he hurried through the doors, shouldering his way past the guys standing around the time clock so he could swipe his card.

"In a hurry this mornin', kid?" the foreman, Jack Eldridge, asked as he watched the younger man shrug out of his jacket and shove it in his locker.

"Nope, just ready to get the day goin'; got things to do after work."

"Uh-huh." He slapped his clipboard against the kid's shoulder. "I'd be in a hurry to get home too, if I had a girl like yours waitin' for me."

"C'mon, Boss, quit givin' the kid a hard time," Burt, a ruddy-faced logger hollered.

Jack handed out assignments for the guys who were going out in the field and then rushed everyone else out into the sawmill where they quickly set about their daily duties.

Michael rubbed his hands together while he waited for one of the guys to bring the first batch of lumber over to be run through the planer before the planks could be moved along to the next step in the process. He flipped the power switch to the on position and nodded at the forklift driver as he eased the first pallet of the day down at the head of the machine.

The work was repetitive but it was physical and kept him in shape, and it beat a nine to five job any day of the week. He donned ear protectors and a pair of goggles before hefting the first plank up onto the machine, guiding it through the feeder and forcing his mind to stay focused on the task at hand. The last thing he wanted to do was lose a finger or his hand because he wasn't paying attention.

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Ten hours later his back felt like it could easily split in two, but despite that he felt good; there was never any question as to whether or not he had earned his paycheck. After putting his gear back into his locker he pulled his jacket on, clocked out, and headed for the exit.

"Hey, Mike, ya headin' over to the tavern after supper?"

He turned around to look at Burt, slowing his gait so that the older man could catch up to him. "No, I think I'm just gonna watch the game at home tonight, Burt."

"All right. Ya wanna ride? Your place is on my way."

Michael shook his head and hunched his shoulders against the wind. "Nah, gonna do a little window shoppin' on my way home."

Burt nodded. "Good point. I don't know 'bout that girl of yours, but my wife would be up in arms if I didn't get her somethin' for Christmas." He chuckled and waved at the younger man. "I'll see ya tomorrow, kid."

Michael walked along the sidewalks, his gaze roving over the brightly lit windows of the little shops, the window displays showing off a wide variety of items in holiday-themed settings. He paused in front of several of the shops, his gaze lingering on different things. He forced his feet to keep moving when he realized how long he had been standing in front of a pet shop, staring at a Dalmatian puppy. They never knew when they were going to have to pick up and leave, and while he knew Maria would like the dog it wouldn't be fair to her or the animal when the time came and they had to leave it behind.

He sighed as he stared into the window of the next shop and knew it would be a huge mistake to give Maria a gift that she would have to leave behind if they suddenly had to leave. His mind turned back to the problem at hand and he wondered what he could do to make her feel better; it was still an area where he struggled to do the right thing at times. His gaze roamed over the framed paintings that were on display, draped with strands of blue and silver garland, strategically hiding the obscene price tags.

He admired the subtle brushstrokes on one of the oil paintings, and he leaned in closer to the window, his nose close enough to the glass that he could feel the cold. His eyes widened as he leaned back to take in the entire picture; the artist had painted a single cabin surrounded by a snow-covered forest. Wisps of smoke drifted up from the chimney and dissipated into the cold night air as yellow light poured out from the single window to cast its warmth across the snowy ground.

The beginnings of a plan began to formulate as he backed away from the shop and continued on his way home. He made a mental note to talk to Burt the next day as he loped up the stairs that led to their second floor apartment.

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Maria slid the casserole dish into the oven, closed the door, and turned to lean against the counter beside the stove. Her gaze slid over the clock on the wall and knew that it was nearly time for Michael to be walking through the front door. She had been off from work so she had spent the day cleaning, and since the apartment was barely six hundred square feet, it hadn't taken very long, and she had spent the rest of the day wandering around the apartment aimlessly.

She wasn't naïve enough to think that Michael didn't know that she had been depressed lately, but so far he had been nice enough to let her keep up the pretense that things were fine. She was going to have to talk to him sooner or later to let him know what was causing the moods, if for no other reason than to put his mind at ease. The last thing she wanted was for him to start thinking that she regretted leaving Roswell and going with him or that she resented him for her being separated from her mother and her best friend because it wasn't true.

She heard his heavy footfalls on the stairs and as his key turned in the door she wondered if he would be going out with the guys to watch the game that night. She knew he had settled into life in Toronto with as much ease as he was capable of; he had made a few friends that he hung out with, guys he worked with at the sawmill who didn't make a big deal of his tendency to be silent, and there was the added bonus of hockey. _Lots of hockey. _She rolled her eyes at that thought as she tried to pull herself together before he came looking for her.

"Maria?" The fabric of his jacket rustled as he shrugged out of it and hung it on the hook behind the front door. "Hey, babe, how was your day?" he asked as he entered the kitchen.

"Unproductive." She leaned into him when he wrapped his arms around her, feeling guilty when she threw her mental walls up to prevent the connection from opening between them when he kissed her.

Michael bit back his frustration when she blocked him and forced himself to remain calm as he leaned back to look down at her. "Do I have time to take a quick shower before dinner?"

"Yeah." Maria watched him go, easily reading the disappointment in his eyes and in the slump to his broad shoulders. She could tell that he wanted her to talk to him, to tell him what was bothering her, and she was hurting him by trying to protect him. She could feel tears threatening and she took several deep breaths in an effort to stop them from falling; she didn't want him to know that she was lonely, that she hated Toronto, the freezing temperatures, and the snow, that she missed her mother and Liz so badly it was like a physical ache. _How could she tell him those things without hurting him even more than she already had?_

After dinner Michael stretched out on the bed in their bedroom, a pair of worn gray sweatpants hanging low on his hips. He grabbed a pillow and the remote for the small television that sat on the dresser, rearranging his position so that he was lying on his stomach and his head was at the foot of the bed. He turned the television on and found the hockey game, adjusting the volume before crossing his arms under his pillow and resting his chin on it.

His eyes followed the game but he wasn't really paying much attention to it; his mind was on Maria and his plan that was slowly beginning to take shape. He had to find a way to make it work, to get her out of the city where they could just be themselves for a little while. There was nothing he could do about her mother or Liz for the present time, but at least he could do something about part of the problem that was causing her depression. He still had a couple of weeks to put everything together and since he didn't have Isabel to rely on this time around he was going to have to make sure he did it right the first time.

Christmas was just around the corner, but if he could get the information he needed from one of the guys at work he was sure he could pull it off in time. _He had to pull it off_, he thought with just the slightest feeling of desperation creeping over him.

"Hey."

Her voice interrupted his thoughts and he turned his head to look at her. "Hey, you goin' to bed early?"

Maria shook her head and motioned at the television. "The game must not be very good."

"What?"

"You're not yelling at the television and insulting the referee or the other team," she said, attempting a smile.

"So, come watch the game with me." He smiled and held a hand out to her. "Maybe it'll get better and I'll find somethin' to yell about."

Her hand rested on his shoulder as she sat down beside him and she frowned at how tight and knotted his muscles felt.

"Whatcha doin'?" he asked when she stood up again and walked into the bathroom.

"Your back must be hurting," she said as she sat back down beside him again. She flipped the top open on the tube of lotion she held, squeezing some into the palm of her hand and warming it up before placing her hands on his back. "So, explain what they're doing again?"

Michael enjoyed talking about hockey and even though he knew that Maria couldn't care less, she had asked in an attempt to connect with him the only way she felt comfortable with at the moment, so he explained the rules, the plays, and anything else that came to mind just so he could keep her talking to him.

She fell asleep before the game was over and he carefully moved her around, doing his best to avoid waking her as he settled her under the covers. He turned the volume down and slid beneath the blanket, feeling the tightness in his chest ease when she shifted closer until she had nestled trustingly against his side. _He would put his plan into motion tomorrow_, he thought decisively. _Maybe he couldn't give her back what she'd lost, but he could give her a few days that resembled normal_. He loved her too much to risk losing her to depression and he was going to do everything in his power to prevent it.

**Part 2**

Michael stood at the gate at the farthest end of the schoolyard and watched Maria as she said her farewells to the constant stream of children pouring from the brick building. He had stood in this very spot countless times, his dark gaze following her as she would kneel down beside one of them, her expression happy and carefree or serious and intent, depending on what the content of the conversation with the child was.

She was kneeling on the ground now, a radiant smile on her face as she laughed at something one little girl was saying. Her left hand rested on the wheelchair the child was sitting in, while the right one was held in the little girl's trusting grip. He was too far away to hear what was being said between them, but it was easy to see the fondness in their exchange.

He crossed his arms on top of the gate and rested his chin on them, oblivious to the cold wind that chilled his bare hands. He knew she had lucked out when she had stumbled on this job; for the first time since they had left Roswell she had a job that she honestly enjoyed. The downside to that was when the time came for them to move on, she wasn't going to want to leave this job or the kids behind.

He shoved those thoughts away and concentrated instead on the present. He waited until the last of the children had been picked up before he straightened up and entered the schoolyard, letting the gate swing shut behind him.

Maria turned around when she heard the solid clang the gate made as it settled into place once more, and fear momentarily held her in its grasp when she saw Michael coming towards her. She relaxed when she realized that there were no signs of urgency in his gait and he wasn't tense. She had lost count of how many times they had been forced to just pick up and leave without any notice, sometimes in the middle of the night as they disappeared into the darkness, and sometimes in the middle of the day, running out on whatever job they happened to be working at the time. She had stopped trying to make friends several moves back, unable to continue making connections with people who would only be left behind the minute things got hot and they had to run again.

She had been able to keep adults at a distance with no problem, but she hadn't been able to maintain that same detachment from the children she worked with on a daily basis no matter how hard she had tried. She tried to avoid thinking about how much it would hurt when the time came and they had to leave once again because when those thoughts surfaced the feeling of sadness was overwhelming.

Michael saw her expression change from the happy and carefree one from just minutes before to the more contemplative one he was becoming so accustomed to seeing and he felt his heart constrict in his chest. His steps slowed as he approached her and he wanted so badly to see that unrestrained smile instead of the strained one she forced onto her face when her gaze settled on him.

"Hi," she greeted, wishing she hadn't looked up in time to see the disappointment that flashed in his blue eyes. "What're you doing here?"

"Jack let everybody cut out a little early since the mill's closed over Christmas week."

Maria's eyes narrowed suspiciously. "He let you guys go early on a Friday?"

Michael shook his head at her skeptical tone. "We're not workin' this weekend and Christmas Eve's on Monday." He shrugged. "What?"

"Holiday or not, Jack hasn't once shut down early or just let everyone go before the end of the day since you've been working there."

"You're too suspicious," he grumbled, shaking his head. "You're startin' to sound like me."

"All right," she conceded, "don't tell me, but come inside because it's freezing out here."

"Aren't you off?" He looked around the deserted, snow-covered grounds as he followed her back up to the large double doors that opened into the front entryway of the school. "I mean, the last of the kids are gone, so you're off the clock, right?"

"I just need to file a few things and clear off my desk and then we can go." She glanced at him as he walked beside her, hands shoved deep in his pockets. "You never did answer my question."

"Huh? Oh, I'm here to pick you up." He followed her into one of the offices, sitting on the corner of her desk when she picked up a stack of folders and started filing them. "You're still off through the beginning of the year?"

Maria paused, the folder in her hand suspended above it's designated slot as she turned back to look at him. "Michael, why do you keep asking me that? You've asked me that same question half a dozen times over the past week."

He shrugged and picked up two red grading pens, tapping them against his thigh in an offbeat rhythm. He waited until she had gone back to filing before he cleared his throat and dropped the pens back in their plastic container. "So, you gonna be ready to go soon?" he asked after a few minutes.

Maria bit her bottom lip and wondered what was causing him to be so antsy. Michael had a tendency to be restless, to prowl, and to pace, especially in small spaces, but he was rarely antsy. She watched him for a moment while he shifted around to play with things on her desk, finally settling for dumping out a box of paper clips and hooking them together to form a long chain. She quickly finished the filing and sat down in her chair to clear off her desk, shaking her head when he presented her with the paper clip chain and a big grin.

"Ready?"

Maria nodded and stood up, pushing the chair into its proper position and lifting her coat off of the back of it. Michael hurried to stand, taking the coat from her and holding it while she slid her arms into the sleeves.

In the car he turned the heater on full blast, the interior quickly warming up since the car hadn't been off for very long. He rubbed his hands together briskly before shifting the car into drive and pulling away from the curb. They drove for several minutes before Maria sat up straighter and looked around.

"This isn't the way to the apartment," she mused aloud. "Where're we going?"

"It's a surprise."

Maria frowned when she realized he was heading for the highway that led out of town and into a part of the country that they had never ventured into. "But where're we going? We don't know about anything that's out here."

"Correction, _you_ don't know about anything that's out here." He glanced at her and nodded at the mountains in the distance. "Haven't you ever wondered what's out here?"

"Michael, what're we doing?"

"We're takin' a trip; getting away for the week."

"What? We can't just take off for a week – "

"We can and we are. I've got everything we'll need so we can spend some time together, just the two of us."

"Michael, we can't just take off like this; you don't have the slightest idea what I'll need if we're gonna be gone for a week."

"Maria, how long have we been together?" He rolled his eyes. "I think I've got a pretty good idea of all the crap that you'll need for a week away."

She considered his statement for several minutes before finally nodding. "Okay, but if I don't have everything you're gonna hear about it." She watched the scenery as it flew by, remaining silent until she just couldn't take it any longer. "All right, I give up; where are we going?"

He grinned when he heard the natural curiosity that was so much a part of her personality surface. "What makes you think I'm gonna tell you?"

"Why wouldn't you?"

"Because it's a surprise." He shrugged one shoulder. "But you can guess if you want to."

Maria sat forward, her body pulling against the seatbelt as she looked around in an attempt to get her bearings. _How long had it been since they had taken a road trip that wasn't the direct result of their pursuers getting too close?_ She tapped her forefinger against her lips as she tried to remember what was in the direction he had taken.

"Niagara Falls?" she guessed.

"Nope." He shifted around, settling more comfortably into his seat. "Good try though."

"New York?" She turned in the seat and stared at him. "It's New York, isn't it?"

"Huh-uh. One day, but not today."

"Wait a minute! We're gonna be gone a week? No, you've gotta go back to the apartment, Michael; your Christmas present's there. We can't go away over the holiday without your present."

"I didn't leave the presents; they're in the trunk."

"What? How did you find it?"

"Maria," he snorted, "did you honestly think I wouldn't find my present? Me? Michael Guerin, investigative genius?"

She stared at him in disbelief. She had worked so hard to hide his gift, knowing that he would just about tear the apartment apart searching for it, and once he found it he'd do everything short of opening it in an effort to discover what was inside. "Tell me you didn't open it."

Michael heard the hint of annoyance in her voice and he shook his head. "Of course not," he said sincerely. He knew how much it meant to her for his gift to be a surprise and he would never do anything to take that away from her. "Honestly, Maria, all I did was move it to the car."

"Uh-huh, you didn't shake it or anything?"

"Let's just say your secret's safe; I wasn't able to figure out what's in the box."

Maria couldn't help but smile at the picture that came to mind, easily able to visualize him as he searched the apartment looking for his gift. Michael exhibited surprisingly childish behavior when it came to gifts, and he could dedicate hours to searching the rooms in the apartment, falsely believing that she was oblivious to what he was doing.

They drove for hours, sometimes talking, sometimes silent, and sometimes just listening to the radio and letting the music fill the silence. They stopped for dinner after a while, returning to the car when they were finished, and Michael could tell she was getting tired as the hours wore on.

"You should get some sleep," he suggested. "We're still a few hours away." He glanced at her when she rubbed at her eyes tiredly. "Take those contact lenses out and give your eyes a break."

"You think it's safe?"

"Yeah." He reached over into the backseat and grabbed the blanket he had placed there earlier that day. "Why don't you lay down and get some sleep," he said after she had taken out the lenses and put them in their case for safekeeping. He wanted more than anything to stop the car and look into her green eyes, but he didn't want to spoil the surprise so he let her go to sleep while he finished the drive.

Hours later, after getting lost twice, he pulled up in front of a small cabin and parked just as the sun began to peek over the horizon. He stretched as far as he could within the confines of the car and moved the rearview mirror into position so he could see himself. He removed the blue contact lenses and put them in their protective case before leaning over to drop it in Maria's purse. He stared at himself in the mirror for several long minutes before he ran his hands through his hair; the blond was slowly replaced by his natural, darker color and when he was finished the spikes he had always favored were back in place. The last thing on his list before getting out of the car was to transform Maria's red hair back to blond, and his fingertips brushed over the soft skin of her cheek when he was finished. Stepping out of the car he walked around to the passengers' side and opened the door, crouching down beside the car and reaching inside to gently wake the sleeping woman.

**Part 3**

Maria woke slowly, sitting up to glance around at her surroundings. Her gaze quickly zeroed in on the small cabin directly in front of the car and she ran her fingers through her hair as she sat up straighter. She climbed out of the car and rubbed her eyes as she stumbled up against Michael's warm, solid body.

Her hands automatically shot up to settle on his shoulders and her eyes widened in shock when she lifted her head and met his searching gaze.

"Michael?" Her hands came up to brush through his rebellious hair and a genuine smile lit up her features when she met his dark brown eyes for the first time in too long. "What're you doing? It's not safe."

"It's safe," he whispered, leaning down to kiss her. "The next seven days belong to us, Maria. I've been assured that there isn't another soul around for at least fifty miles in any direction."

"Seven days?" she repeated hoarsely. "We have an entire week to just be ourselves? No different hair colors or colored contact lenses? No looking over our shoulders…"

"Nope, none of that." Her eyes sparkled with excitement as she looked around and Michael knew right away that the next seven days would be worth every extra hour he had put in at work over the past few weeks. "Why don't you go check it out while I get our stuff outta the car? It should be unlocked; keys'll be on the kitchen table." He shook his head when she hurried up to the front door, throwing it open, and disappearing inside.

He could hear her excited ranting as she ran from room to room, exploring the small, four-room cabin. He carried several armloads of stuff inside, glancing around each time he dropped something off. With the final trip inside he deposited their gifts for each other on the kitchen table and checked the refrigerator and cabinets, pleased when he saw that they had been stocked according to his specifications. He reached for a bottle of cold water and turned away just in time for Maria to throw herself into his arms.

"How did you do all this?" she asked as her arms came up to wrap around his neck.

"You like it?"

"Are you kidding? I love it!" Her eyes traced over his features, loving him even more if it was possible. "Michael?"

"Um-hmm?" He was so distracted by the happiness radiating out from her entire being that he wasn't really paying attention.

"Michael, do you remember the last time we made love without disguises?"

His head shot up at her husky question and he shook his head. He honestly couldn't remember. He was always worried about the possibility that someone would discover who they were and they would have to run again so they maintained the disguises all the time. "You've already mapped the place out?" he asked, tugging her closer as his mouth turned up into a smile.

"Yeah." A shiver raced down her spine when she saw his expression change. She laughed freely when he tore his jacket off and tossed it on the table before scooping her up in his arms.

"Point me in the right direction," he growled.

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Maria traced her fingers over Michael's stubborn features, admiring him in the firelight that flickered in the fireplace across the room. For the first time in too long she felt like herself and she stared at him in wonder. He had known exactly what she needed and he had found a way to make it happen; he had found a way to make her feel the way she needed to feel. His arm tightened around her waist when she shifted and she smiled; even in sleep he was possessive.

"What time is it?" he mumbled, the words muffled by the pillow.

"Who cares?" She brushed his hair back when he rolled over, blinking to bring his dark gaze into focus.

"I didn't mean to sleep so long." He rubbed his hands over his face as he pushed himself up onto his elbows. "It's not dark yet."

Maria tilted her head to one side, her expression questioning. "Does it matter?"

"Depends… you wanna tree?"

She sat up and looked down at him. "A tree? Like a Christmas tree?"

"Well, the ornaments an' lights would look pretty goofy on a palm tree." He yawned and ran his hand through his hair. "Not sure where you'd find one around here anyway."

"Seriously? We're gonna go find a tree?"

"Depends. You gonna get outta this bed?" He fell back against the pillows and chuckled when she appeared to be weighing her options. "We've got seven days and seven nights, babe."

She was out of bed in no time, going out into the main room to grab her bag and hurrying back. "Okay, but this is an important decision; you don't want the tree to be too big, but you don't want it to be too small either. Then of course, it needs to be even all around and the branches should be full…" Her voice was distorted for a minute as she pulled a sweater over her head. "Scrawny branches would just be a travesty…"

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Six hours later Michael was standing in the main room of the cabin, trying to decide if the tree was standing straight or not. He had been worried when Maria had seemed overly interested in a tree that was taller than he was, but after teasing him about it she had selected one that was more manageable and met all of her requirements. She had made dinner while he had worked on wrestling the tree into the stand and getting it upright.

She was in the kitchen now, singing a Christmas song while she made popcorn so they could string it on the tree. He sat down and studied the tree, his arms stretched out along the back of the couch as he tilted his head to one side and eyed the tree critically. He looked up when a large bowl of fluffy popcorn was placed in his line of vision.

"What're you doing?" she asked, turning to look at the tree.

"Tryin' to decide if it's leanin' to one side or not," he answered, grabbing a handful of the popcorn and stuffing it in his mouth.

"You're not supposed to eat it," she admonished, placing the bowl on the coffee table. "I'm gonna start putting the lights on the tree while you start threading the popcorn."

"I'm not sewin' a bunch of popcorn together; that's a chick's job," he said, knowing she wouldn't let the comment go. He grinned when she froze in the process of plugging in a strand of colored lights to test them.

She motioned for him to get up. "Over here, now, and hold your hands out." As soon as he had complied she hung the stand of lights over his hands. "Your job is to stand there and hold the lights." She waited for the grin that she knew was coming and she nodded as soon as it made an appearance. "You're still stringing the popcorn… after I'm done with the lights."

On Christmas Eve they lounged on the couch, the only light in the room coming from the fireplace and the twinkling lights on the tree. The small stereo in the corner of the room was tuned to a station playing Christmas carols and outside the snow was falling once more.

"What made you decide to do this?"

Michael woke from his light doze when she voiced the question and he shifted slightly to glance down at her. He could only see the top of her head since she was lying on the couch beside him and her head was resting on his chest, but he could feel the tension in her body. "You needed a break from the charade that we live every day; I know it's takin' its toll on you and I was hopin' some time away might help." He paused. "Is it?"

She shifted, turning so she could place her left hand on his chest, and rest her chin on the back of her hand as she met his gaze directly. "More than I can probably tell you. I knew you could tell something was wrong but I just didn't know how to talk to you about it; I was afraid you'd think I regret the choice I made to come with you."

"But you don't." There was just enough doubt in his voice to make the statement come across as a question.

"No, not once." Her tone was adamant. "I've never regretted making that choice. The past few weeks have just been difficult with Christmas getting closer; I miss my mom and Liz, Michael. That's not something that's gonna go away until I see them again, and I know that may not happen for a very long time. I know it's hard for you too, that you miss Max and Isabel; you don't talk about it, but they're your family and I know you miss them."

"Yeah, I guess I do. It's not quite Christmas without Isabel runnin' around organizing the holiday and everything that goes with it, huh?"

"No, it's not." She smiled. "I guess there's one advantage though."

"What's that?"

"She can't tell you that you're not allowed to open your gift early."

Michael's eyebrows rose in interest and his eyes lit up in anticipation. "You're gonna let me open my gift tonight?" he asked cautiously.

"Well, it is Christmas Eve." She couldn't help but smile at his hopeful expression. "I think we can open our gifts a little early."

"I'll go get 'em."

Maria sat up as soon as he had gone to retrieve the gifts wrapped in brightly colored paper from under the tree. He placed hers on the coffee table in front of her before going back for his, giving it a good shake as he tried once more to determine what was inside.

"I don't think you're gonna guess what it is." She pointed at his gift as he sat down. "Open yours first."

"Are you sure?"

Maria rolled her eyes at the unnecessary question; he was already ripping through the paper to get to the box beneath. He tore the lid off the box and tossed it aside, pushing away the green tissue paper to look at the gift hidden inside. She watched him as he lifted the black leather jacket up and held it out in front of him, staring at it speechlessly.

"Try it on," she said, nudging him.

Michael stood up and shrugged into the jacket, smoothing his hands over the supple leather. The jacket was hip-length and fit his frame perfectly just as she had known it would.

"Maria, this is…" Words failed him as they so often did, and his hands gestured uselessly in an effort to convey his feelings.

"It looks good on you," she complimented with a smile. "Okay, my turn now."

He nodded and sat down beside her, grateful for the reprieve. She understood his inability to express himself and while there were times when she insisted he needed to try, he really appreciated the times when she accepted that he just couldn't get the words out.

His gaze followed her hands as she tore the paper off, discarding the lid before pulling the box closer to the edge of the table. She paused for a moment when she saw the gift and a moment later, she was lifting the carpetbag out and placing it on her lap as she ran her hands over the intricate designs embroidered into the red material.

"Michael, it's beautiful," she breathed. "The design… some of it is antarian, right?"

"Yeah, I added that myself." He shrugged. "To give it a personal touch, y'know?"

"Where did you find it?"

"At that antiques mall downtown. And if there's anything you ever need to know about carpetbags, I can probably help you; the old lady who owns the place had to give me the entire history of the thing before she'd let me out the door."

Maria knew whom he was talking about and she giggled at the image of Michael, trapped by the little old woman while she gave him the long version of the carpetbag's history. The woman was sweet but she really did like to talk, and anyone who ventured into her store was certain to have an interesting conversation.

"Yeah, you think it's funny, but just for the record, it wasn't funny when I was tryin' to explain to Jack why I was late getting back from lunch."

"Well, I appreciate all of your pain and suffering to find the perfect gift." She leaned over to kiss him. "And it is the perfect gift."

Michael shrugged one shoulder. "I know it sucks that sometimes we've gotta pick up and leave and we don't have a chance to do much more than grab a few things an' go; I just thought this way at least you'd be able to take it with you, y'know?"

She nodded. "I know."

"I know you're not all that excited about the cold and the snow, so maybe next time we've gotta move we can go someplace warmer."

"You seem to enjoy it though, and honestly, I do miss the desert and the heat, but mostly I just miss my mom and Liz. It's a shame there isn't a place nearby to ski; I noticed that the owners left a note that we could use the ski equipment in the shed."

"There's a ski resort about three hours from here," Michael said. "We could drive out there, spend the day skiin'."

"It's tempting, but I don't wanna have to put our disguises back on any sooner than we have to."

Michael thought about that for a minute, weighing the risks, before he spoke. "We're far enough away from everything and there'll be a ton of people there so I think we'd be safe if we went without the disguises."

"Really?"

"Yeah." He smiled when she nearly deafened him with her excited squeal as she launched herself into his arms.

_Epilogue_

Michael looked at the small slope before them, insulted by the lack of challenge that it presented. He glanced over at Maria, whom was animatedly talking to a mother of three children who were all clamoring for their instructor's attention. The woman was showing her different ways to control the direction of the skis and Maria was moving with her, mimicking her movements. He rolled his eyes before looking back at the pathetic slope waiting for them.

"I saw that," Maria yelled at him.

"I wasn't hidin' it," he yelled back.

Maria carefully skied over to him and slapped his upper arm with one gloved hand. "You should've come over for some pointers."

He rolled his eyes again. "Maria, do you see this slope? Seriously, this isn't the least bit challenging and I can't believe you insisted on startin' here."

"Have you skied before? No. This is the beginner's slope and as beginners, this is where we'll start."

"It doesn't matter if I've done this before or not. Need I remind you that I'm genetically advanced, that I'm highly adaptable to any situation?"

Maria nodded and waved one hand out in front of them. "By all means, Michael, please show off your advanced and adaptable skills."

He snorted and pointed the skis towards the slope, pushed off, and began a smooth descent. "See? I told you this was – " He yelped loudly when his feet suddenly went in two different directions and he ended up on his backside in the snow. The children who had been in the middle of their instruction started laughing and giggling, pointing at him when he attempted to shove himself to his feet too fast and they flew out from under him again. His expression was a comical mix of surprise, irritation, and embarrassment.

Maria doubled over, laughing so hard tears were running down her face. When she could control her laughter, she carefully sidestepped down the slope until she reached him and held a hand out to him. "Need a hand?"

"Y'know why this happened, right?"

"Because you don't know how to ski and you're too stubborn to listen to the instructor?" she asked, trying very hard to keep a straight face.

"No. Because this slope is inferior."

She nodded. "Okay."

He growled when she almost choked on the word because she was trying not to laugh. "I guess you know so much more about skiin' because you spoke to some woman for five minutes."

"Well, at the very least I know how to stop."

"Uh-huh." He gestured at the remainder of the slope. "Please, enlighten me."

Maria rolled her eyes at his sarcastically teasing tone. "Okay," she agreed, assuming the starting position. She gently pushed off, and the air breezed by pleasantly as she skied down the slope. She picked up speed as she neared the bottom of the small hill and as she attempted to turn her body correctly to glide right into a perfect stop, she made a small miscalculation and ended up face-first in the soft powder. She sat up quickly and brushed the snow off of her face and out of her hair, attempting to ignore the laughter that was getting closer.

"Hey, DeLuca, I may not have participated in your little instruction course, but uh, I'm pretty sure they don't recommend stoppin' your descent with your face," Michael called, laughing loudly.

His laughter was abruptly cut short when his skis got tangled up in one of hers that had released when she had taken the fall, and a few seconds later, he landed in the snow right beside her.

"What was that about stopping your descent with your face?" Maria asked as she reached up to brush snow from his spiky hair.

"Y'think maybe skiin' just isn't our thing?" he asked, grinning at her.

"Probably not, but it is fun." She tugged him closer to kiss him, pulling away a minute later to look over her shoulder when several of the children skied past them, showering them with snow as they brought themselves to a smooth stop. "C'mon, let's try again."

Michael trudged up the hill behind her, willing to try a million times if it kept the smile on her face and happiness shining in her eyes. They didn't know what the next year held in store for them, but they had now. They had today to enjoy the way their lives should have been, and he intended to make sure that she enjoyed every moment of the next week. He was going to make sure that they created plenty of happy memories so she could look back on this week and it would bring a smile to her face.

**The End**.

17


	4. Chapter 4

Title: Father Christmas (Christmas 2004)

Author: Vallygirl

Rating: Teen

Email: In response to the 2007 Christmas challenge posted on CID. Maria and Michael celebrate Christmas in England. Just some Candy Christmas fluff.

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters from Roswell but I certainly treat our favorite Candy Couple better than Jason Katims and his crew ever could.

Maria grinned as she plopped the tapestry bag Michael had given her last Christmas at the foot of the bed. She spun around when she heard him walk over the threshold with the rest of their luggage. She waited until he deposited the bags on the floor before rushing towards him and engulfing him in a hug.

"Oh Michael, it's just like I always imagined it would be like," she gushed before standing on her tippy toes to kiss him.

"Well since we've been traveling by train through Europe I figured ending our trip in a village in the Cotswold would make you happy."

"Especially since Christmas is tomorrow," she purred as she reached down, taking his hand and leading him towards the bed.

"Mmmm," Michael agreed as he began to nuzzle the side of Maria's neck, licking her pulse point.

"Yoo-hoo, Mr. and Mrs. O'Neill," a friendly voice called out from behind the bedroom door.

Michael groaned as Maria pushed him off over her and hopped up to open the door to their room. "Hello Mrs. Everest," Maria chirped merrily.

"Oh please Dear, call me Polly. I just came up to see if your room was alright and if you would need any extra blankets?" The kindly older woman asked as she smiled at the young couple.

"Only if you call us me Maria and my husband Michael," Maria said as she let the other woman into the room. "Actually I think we're all set, it's nice and toasty in here."

"Jolly good. I also wanted to remind you that we're going to be serving tea in half an hour."

"We'll be down," Maria reassured her.

"Very good, we'll see you both downstairs in half an hour then," Polly said as she started for the door.

Maria closed the door and held up her hands. "Don't even think about trying to get me to join you in that bed mister. We need to freshen up and change for tea."

"Come on Maria, do we have to go down there? I don't even like tea," Michael whined as he thought about making love to Maria.

"It'll be fun and you said you wanted to give me a traditional English Christmas."

"Fine," Michael agreed half heartedly as he stood up, taking off the leather trench coat Maria had given him last Christmas.

Maria paused to give him a quick kiss as she hurried past him into the bathroom.

"I'm just taking a quick shower…and no you can't join me," she called out over her shoulder.

"Merry frigging Christmas to me," Michael mumbled to himself as he flopped down on the bed.

"Are you sure I look alright?" Maria asked as she tugged at her brown turtleneck sweater.

"You look fine," Michael reassured her. He looked around and shook his head. "Please tell me we're not the youngest people here?" He asked as he hung their coats up. He was glad she suggested they bring them in case they decided to go for a walk after tea.

He watched as Maria grinned and joined the group of women sitting by the fireplace. He saw Mr. Everest talking to several men and remembered that he needed to speak to the man about his surprise for Maria and quickly walked over.

"Excuse me, Mr. Everest."

The older man turned and looked up at his newest border. "Oh Mr. O'Neill, how are you and your wife enjoying your stay so far?"

"It's great, Maria loves it here. Actually, I wanted to check with you if it would be alright if I bought a small Christmas tree for our room. I mean the one here in the den is great and all but I know my wife and she's going to be disappointed if she doesn't have a tree to look at when she first wakes up tomorrow morning."

"I don't see why not. I'll give you directions to the nearest nursery where you can pick one up and I could probable dig up a few ornaments for you too."

"Thank you," Michael said, relieved that he was going to be able to give Maria her Christmas tree after all.

"Michael and I got married after high school," Maria explained to her hostess and the other women. She and Michael had come up with their cover story while Michael created their passports using his powers.

"Oh you don't hear that too often now-a-days. I was only seventeen when I married my Peter."

"How long have you and Mr. Everest been married?" Maria asked.

"Thirty-five years this August. Our oldest daughter Margaret will be her in a few hours with her husband and her three children. My youngest daughter Amy is studying in the States and my son Jake went to his in-laws this year. I'll miss having my twin granddaughters here for Christmas but it's only fair since the spent Christmas here last year."

Maria couldn't help smiling and sharing, "Amy is my mother's name."

"Ah, she must be missing you this Christmas."

"I guess," Maria murmured sadly before forcing herself to smile cheerfully. "But she was all for me and Michael traveling through Europe. She agreed that we should do it before we start a family."

"You and that handsome husband of yours will make some beautiful babies," Mrs. Everest said as she patted Maria's hand. "Oh my, I should put the tea on."

"Can I help?" Maria asked.

"Oh that would be grand of you, thank you."

Maria followed the older woman towards the kitchen, unaware of a certain alien watching her every move before grabbing his leather coat off the rack and heading out to pick up part of her Christmas present.

Operation Christmas tree had gone off without a hitch. Michael had been able to sneak up the back stairs to their room and used the decorations Mr. Everest had left for him to decorate the tiny tree he had bought to put their presents under. He carefully took out the present he had gotten for Maria in Austria and gently placed the wrapped package under the tree before rejoining the others.

Michael wasn't one for tea but the sandwiches and cakes were delicious enough to make up for the tea part. He settled on the couch by the fireplace as Maria snuggled against him, nibbling on her forth cake.

"Mmmm this is so good," she sighed as she finished off the sugary treat.

"I have to agree they were pretty tasty."

Maria grinned. "Admit it, you're having fun."

"Ok, I admit it, I'm having fun."

Maria was getting ready to tease him when the front door opened to a flurry of activity as three small children raced in calling for their Nana and Papa.

"The Everest's daughter and her family here," Maria explained as the couple in question followed the children into the Inn.

Michael shook his head in amusement as he watched their host son-in-law struggle under the weight of their luggage before getting up to help the other man. The next thirty minutes went by in a blur as introductions were done all around and the Everest's daughter and her family were situated in their rooms.

Maria helped Polly and her daughter Margaret clean up before settling in the den with everyone else to watch the Everest's grandchildren put on a Christmas Pantomime show that had all the adults chuckling at the children's antics.

Late afternoon tea became early evening drinks around the fireplace as they sat around singing Christmas carols and Mr. Everest read "'Twas the Night Before Christmas". Maria giggled as she snuggled against Michael.

"Mmmm this wassail is really good, sure you don't want to try it?"

"No thanks, not unless you want me to use my powers in front of everyone," Michael whispered in her ear before kissing her on the neck.

"Opps, I forgot. Don't worry, I'll drink yours too." Maria offered as she reached for the cup in front of Michael.

"I think you've had enough," Michael said as he gently took the cup away from a tipsy Maria and couldn't help smiling at the pout that graced her beautiful face. Standing up he cleared his throat, "I think we're going to call it a night."

Maria looked up in surprised, "we are?"

Polly looked at the clock over the mantel and then at her grandchildren. "My goodness, I didn't realize how late it was actually. I hope Father Christmas didn't have to pass by the house because the children weren't in bed."

"See Maria, Father Christmas might have passed by without dropping off our presents because we weren't in bed."

"You're too big for Father Christmas to bring you presents," the youngest child Kara said as she looked up at Michael.

"You're never too big for a visit from Father Christmas," Michael told the little girl as he bent down so that they were eye level.

Maria smiled as she watched Michael with Kara and couldn't help thinking about what Polly had said to her earlier about them making beautiful babies together. She couldn't wait to see Michael with their children. She knew he will be a wonderful father. Standing up she joined Michael and slid her hand into his.

"Come along Kara," her grandmother called.

"Goodnight everyone," Maria said as she let Michael lead her towards the stairs to their room.

"Were there that many stairs this afternoon?" Maria asked as she leaned her head against Michael's back as he opened the door to their room.

"Maybe you shouldn't have had four cakes porky," he teased.

"See if you get laid tonight," Maria huffed as she pushed past him into the room.

Michael grinned as he heard her intake of breath as she took in the small sparkling Christmas tree at the foot of their bed and the small package that sat beneath it.

"Michael, it's beautiful."

"So I might get laid tonight after all."

Running over to the tree she picked up her present and shook it excitedly. "That depends. Do we get to open our presents tonight?"

Chuckling he nodded his head, "sure why not."

"Heh," Maria giggled as she put the box down and went over to where she had had put down her tapestry bag and pulled out Michael's present. "You go first," Maria urged as she handed the package to him.

Sitting down in the easy chair next to the window he tore open the wrapping paper and pulled out a black cable knit sweater. He looked up at Maria in awe.

"Well I had to do something while we were on the train all those hours," she said as he slipped the sweater on.

"It's amazing," Michael said as he pulled her down onto his lap and gave her a passionate kiss.

"Mmmm," Maria purred as they pulled apart. "My turn," she announced as she hopped up and picked the present under the tree. Michael watched as she ripped the paper off the box in her hands.

"Michael," she murmured as she held up the small wooden jewelry box that he had used his powers to etch the alien symbol they had seen on their first road trip together when they were sixteen.

"Open it," he urged her.

She opened the box and gasped, "Oh my God, it's beautiful." She said as she lifted a thin gold chain with a heart shape locket.

"Here let me help put it on," Michael offered as he got up and stood behind her.

Maria chewed on her lower lip as Michael secured the clasp of the necklace. She lifted the locket up to study it as she leaned back as Michael wrapped his arms around her waist. Opening the locket, she couldn't stop the tears that slid down her cheeks as she saw that once side held their prom picture and the other side held a picture of her mother.

Smiling he turned her gently in his arms and mated his forehead against hers, "Merry Christmas Maria."

Sniffling she wiped away her tears and said in a husky voice, "you so are so getting laid tonight."

"Works for me," Michael teased as he spun her around and guided her over to their bed. They both laughed as they landed on the bed in a tangle of arms and legs. "God, I love you."

Grinning she reached up and ran her fingers through his hair. "I love you too, Merry Christmas Michael."

"Merry Christmas Maria."

The End


	5. Chapter 5

**All Signs Point To Matrimony**

Part 4 of the Candy Is Dandy Christmas challenge. Maria wonders if she will ever get to say 'I do'.

**Author: **girlinacoma

**Rating:** Adult

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing, etc. Lyrics belong to ABBA and their publishers, obviously.

"Because I do...I do I do I do I do..." I can't help singing along with the ABBA classic as I take my morning shower. Wonderful hot water streams down my back. Ahhhh...bliss.

Showering is pretty much my only 'me' time these days, it's been that way since I went on the run with Michael four years ago. Fugitive life allows for little comfort and luxuries so you have to take what you can when you have the opportunity. Our current situation is not as bad as it used to be when Michael and I were with the others; we have our own modest cottage that we rent from a local farmer that we've lived in for the last two months, a far cry from camping out in the middle of nowhere and travelling in a cramped old van with four other people. We know we can't stay here too long, but we're cherishing the rare stability while we can.

"So come on, now lets try it,

I love you, can't deny it  
'Cause its true...I do, I do, I do, I do, I do  
So love me or leave me,

Make your choice but believe me,  
I love you...I do, I do, I..."

Sigh. I shut off the shower radio, feeling more than just a little grumpy. Anything relating to marriage or 'I do's' annoys me these days. I'm only 22 but Michael and I have been together for the most part of the last 6 years, I feel completely ready to take that next step but I sometimes wonder if he'll ever be. Probably not. He hasn't liked me bringing marriage up in conversation, the abrupt change of topic pretty much saying it all. I hate admitting it but it hurts.Oh I know he loves me fiercely but somewhere deep down inside I worry about becoming Amy Deluca, the sequel. As irrational as it is, my old insecurities tend to persist. The funk always gets worse as Christmas approaches, a time when I already miss my mother so terribly while wondering how she is coping without her only child.

I climb out of the shower and quickly rub my body down with a towel, before putting on my skanky looking pink waitress uniform. Yes, I am somehow still stuck in the same line of work I was in at age sixteen...how depressing. Michael has already left for work, he's an apprentice of sorts for our landlord. He helps with maintaining the property, chopping wood, stuff like that. As I approach the front door to lock up, I find a slip of paper with Michael's handwriting on it. My heart speeds up when I read what it says:

_I have to talk to you tonight – don't work extra hours at the cafe today. It's__ IMPORTANT__ and it can't wait._

_Michael_

Shit. What the hell does_ that _mean? He's going to leave me on my own? He's found another woman? Michael has been working longer hours lately. Oh shut up Maria. I have no more time to mull over the possibilities or argue with myself because I'm already running late for work. I toss the paper back down quickly before rushing out.

The shift goes by so slowly, giving me far too much time to work myself up into a panic over Michael's note. My mind is focused on him that I screw up about five orders throughout the day, leaving my manager pissed off at me. Whatever. The rest of my life is on the line here, lady! Stupid old bitch. At the end of my shift I hurry out and practically sprint the mile long distance back to the farm. Michael is already home when I get in, smirking while I struggle to regain my breath. I glare at him until he gets the hint and grabs me a glass of water. As soon as I'm finished, he pulls me over to our couch and sits me down.

"You're probably wondering what I need to talk to you about." he begins.

No shit Sherlock, is the Pope Catholic? But I just nod, not in the mood for a sparring match. My stomach is already busy doing Olympic-calibre tumbling.

"Isabel dreamwalked me last night." he continues. "She and Kyle are fine, before you panic. Anyway, during the course of our dream conversation, I made the mistake of telling her where we are."

"And?"

"They're coming to visit us for Christmas. All four of them, . I told her repeatedly that it wasn't safe and..."

Michael doesn't get the chance to finish before I'm squealing and jumping up and down on his lap like a little kid. My Christmas is suddenly looking far more cheerier.

"Oh my God, this is amazing! I can't wait to see everyone! I've been dying to talk to Liz, it'll be just like the old days! I wonder if..."

It's Michael's turn to cut me off but he does so with a slow kiss before pulling back to look me in the eye.

"You know the risks that this visit will bring. I'm not very happy about it, as much as I'd like to see them too. But you know how Isabel gets."

I laugh. "Yeah, she's pretty persuasive when she needs to be." I lean in and kiss his beautifully soft lips before adding, "I know the risks Michael, and I'm willing to take them. I also know that you happen to be the greatest protector in the universe and would never let anything happen to me. We'll be fine, I promise."

Michael looks doubtful but relents. "I hope you're right."

"I_ know _I'm right, I always am."

"Whatever."

Isabel, Kyle, Liz and Max arrive a week later and two days before Christmas Day. Everyone is in good spirits despite arriving late in the evening. Isabel and Kyle seeming particularly happy, which is slightly suspicious. As far as I'm aware, Isabel is still married to Jesse although I don't think they've spoken since the day we left Roswell for good. It's sad but it's been four years and Isabel deserves her happiness, cruel as it sounds. Liz looks positively radiant, married life suits both herself and Max to a T. Unfortunately the ring on her finger reminds me of the mini depression I was in last week and the joy I had from seeing my friends slowly fades. Still, I do my best to stay cheerful. It's hardly Liz's fault that she is living my dream.

I must have been staring into space, because I fail to notice Isabel's insistent tapping of my shoulder.

"Hello! Earth to Maria!" she finally snaps with exasperation.

Oh no, the Christmas Nazi beckons. I quickly snap to attention. "Sorry, Is."

"Fine, fine. I need you and Liz to come with me tomorrow morning to buy all the necessary supplies for Christmas dinner. God knows you and Michael haven't done anything to prepare so we'll need a few hours to get everything we need."

And Isabel is off in Nazi mode as she throws her hands up in the air, bemoaning the lack of Christmas decorations in our house, save for a plastic angel lying on our kitchenette counter. Well it's hard to celebrate the holiday season when you're barely making minimum wage, I don't know how she plans on paying for this feast. But I'm sure Isabel has it figured out, she always does.

We all say our goodnights and turn in early, ready to be worked to death by the slave driver...er, Isabel the next day. I curl up in Michael's warm arms and soon fall asleep.

True to form, Isabel wakes us all up early on Christmas Eve. After a quick breakfast of eggs and toast, everyone is assigned a job. Liz and I are helping Isabel with groceries, Michael and Kyle are in charge of finding a suitable tree and Max is supposed to collect a bunch of small tree branches and then alter them into decorations with his powers. Before I leave with the girls, I make my way over to Michael who is busy bitching to Kyle about becoming Is's Christmas slave once more. He pulls me into his arms for a nice long thorough kiss goodbye, before we are forced apart by the Nazi.

"Maria!" she barks. "We're on a tight schedule here, move it!"

Michael laughs." Think of the schedule, Maria the precious schdeule!" he whispers mockingly and kisses my forehead before gently nudging me toward the door. As I walk out the door, I look back and make eye contact with him. There's some kind of strange twinkle in his eyes. Dammit, why does my spaceboy have to be so darn mysterious!

Isabel drives Liz and I to a mall about two hours away to buy everything we need for the dinner. Turkeys, hams, salads, vegetables, puddings, icecream, chocolate, chips, wine (for the humans), soda...when Isabel Evans plans a Christmas dinner, she really goes all out. But I am still wondering how this big spread will be paid for.

I don't have to wonder for much longer when we reach the registers. Isabel hands the checkout operator two crisp one hundred dollar bills and we are soon on our way back to her car with the groceries. Isabel sees my questioning eyes and seems to be aware of what I want to know.

"It's Kyle. He's an insanely good gambler. We hit up the casinos in Las Vegas and Reno and he wins big every time, with no powers whatsoever."

"Ohhhhh." I'm amazed. Wow, Buddha Boy the provider. Than I crack up, remembering the trip to Vegas five years ago when I told a blackjack dealer that Kyle was a problem gambler, just as he was on a winning streak. Guess they forgot! Is and Liz join in with the laughing and all thoughts of money and weird alien boys temporarily fly out the window.

We stop for lunch at a road side cafe before heading back to the cottage to begin organizing tomorrow's festivities. As we get closer to home, Isabel turns off onto a narrow side road that looks like it hasn't been used since the nineteenth century. Of course, I fail to realize this until we are a mile down.

"Is, you're going the wrong way. We have to head back onto the highway."

"Oh, I just thought a detour might be nice." she replies vaguely.

Now this is strange. I would have sworn that Isabel would be itching to get back as soon as possible. I look at Liz who seems to be avoiding my gaze. Okaaaaaay then. Something is definitely off here.

"A detour?" I probe further.

"Yes Maria, a detour. Do you have a problem with that?" Isabel responds with a touch of exasperation.

"Well, I guess not..." Although I do have a problem with my butt going numb from being in the car so long, but I refrain from commenting further.

"The forest is beautiful around here." Liz chimes in. "Oh look, there's a sign up ahead, maybe they're selling wild strawberries or something."

Wow...strawberries. If it weren't for the fact that Isabel already is not of this earth, I'd think that aliens have abducted my friends.

"Why...have you got something hot planned for Max, huh?" I tease her. Liz blushes profusely.

"Ewwww, do we have to talk about my brother in _that_ way?"

Liz and I snicker. I'm about to reveal some details about Michael to gross Isabel out when I notice that we're close enough to read what it says on that stupid sign.

_It's been a long time._

How odd. Then as we drive around the corner and down a gently sloping hill, I see a few more signs taped on trees.

_We've been through so much together._

I'm intrigued and look over at the others. Isabel seems to be concentrating on driving as slowly as possible and Liz is staring out of the back window. Something isn't right here, but I can't quite put a finger on what it is. There are five more presumably weird cryptic signs ahead.

_I know I'm not Mr. Romance. I'm more like Mr. Asshole sometimes._

Hah, so some other girl out there is stuck with her own Michael; they've had some kind of fight and here he is crawling back up to her. Snort.

_I don't change my sheets, I buy you generic shampoo, I eat weird food, I take you bowling instead of nice restaurants, I have no fortune to offer you, I never know how to say the right things._

Wait a minute. That girl...oh shit, I think it might be me! But we haven't argued since last week when Michael came home with mud on his shoes, leaving muddy footprints on our carpet.

_But the thing is, I love you more than anything else. __Anything__. And I want to spend my life with you, whatever is left of it._

Oh God. I don't think this is Michael...it can't be. Nevertheless, I'm practically jumping up and down in my seat. The second last sign contains just two letters.

_Marry me._

I am so stunned that my mind immediately goes into gibberish mode. Definitely, definitely not Michael. It can't be. Maybe Kyle? Would he dare buy Isabel generic shampoo though? My insecurities won't let it be Michael. Oh hell, please please please let it be Michael.

There is only one more sign ahead.

_Yeah I'm talking to you, Deluca._

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAghhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!! It _is_ me! It's me! Oh God, oh shit, oh crap, it's meeeeeeeeeee! Me! Not Isabel, not Liz, not that Courtney skank-bitch - me! Maria Deluca, soon to be Mrs. Maria Deluca-Guerin!

I barely notice Liz and Isabel grinning and squealing as I jump out of the car and dash around to the last sign. There is a movement behind some nearby bushes, from which Spaceboy appears with leaves and twigs tangled up in his unruly hair. It doesn't matter at all to me, he's still the most beautiful thing I've ever seen.

Just as I think I'm about to go into either shock or a meltdown, Michael makes his way over to me. He takes my shaking hands in his.

"Maria, look at me."

I gaze up into those amazing whiskey brown eyes. He looks almost...terrified. I can't imagine why. It's kind of hard to tell though, with my vision quickly blurring with tears.

"Marry me, Maria. Please?"

"Marry you? Marry you! MARRY YOU!!! Of course I'm going to marry you!" I sob in reply, taking my hands away and throwing myself into his arms.

Michael picks me up and twirls us both around for a moment before setting me down and covering my lips with his. We fall over together on the grass, tongues duelling, hands wandering until he nudges me away, to pull something out of his pocket. It's a sparkling emerald set in a simple white-gold ring.

"I bought this a while ago. I'm sorry if it's not very good, I couldn't afford much more but it reminded me of your eyes."

"It's beautiful, Michael. It's so perfect...you're perfect. I love you." I manage to get out in between sobs. I mean it, the man in front of me is like a divine gift from God to me. I'll never ever be able to convey to anyone the extent of my love for him because there is no end. I'm pretty sure we were made for each other, unconventional as we may be.

"I love you too. Now, give me your hand."

I stretch out my left hand and Michael slips the ring on my finger. It fits perfectly, just like Michael and I. He kisses my hand and then pulls me close to hold me once more.

"You probably thought that this was never gonna happen, didn't you?" he asks softly.

I laugh softly. "I was never really sure. I've worried about ending up like Mom but I know in my heart that you're not my dad and you're not going to leave."

"I'm not. You're the reason I'm here, the only reason. No one else."

"Ditto." I lean in for another kiss, to seal the deal once and for all.

I'm not sure how we made it back to the cottage but the others aren't around. Of course, since they know us far too well, they really don't want to be around for what's to come. Hopefully they made it to a hotel or something. Whatever. I love them but all I care about right now is that Michael continues to kiss the life out of me and touch me everywhere with his amazing big hands.

We fall onto the bed half naked, having ripped each other's shirts off back in the living room. Michael dips his head down and begins to peppering my neck with kisses. I can't help groaning and lift my head back slightly to give him easier access, while running my hands up and down his bare back. Rough hands find my breasts, massaging my nipples into hard peaks. He moves his head down to take one into his mouth briefly before moving onto the zipper of my jeans. I help him slide both them and my panties off of me in record time so that Michael can touch me where I desperately need him to. His fingers dance over my folds so delicately that I think I'm going to go insane. I need more, more more more! My silent wish is granted when he replaces his fingers with his mouth and suddenly I am flying through space, literally seeing stars and sunbursts and God knows what. This man is far too talented for his own good.

Michael lifts his head up so that he can take off his own jeans, sans underwear. At first sight of his straining hard cock, I lick my lips and go to take him in my mouth, but he shakes his head.

"I want you, in you." he whispers harshly.

I nod, happy to do whatever he wishes.

Michael nudges my legs apart with his knee and enters with a single hard stroke and I almost orgasm right then and there. Nothing in the universe could ever feel as incredible as having Michael inside me. It's such a wonderful feeling that it almost brings a tear to my eye.

We move together with grace, steadly racing together towards completion. Faster and faster, closer and closer...until I fall over the edge with my insides milking him, triggering his own release.

He stays inside of me as we lay together in our post-orgasmic haze. It is perfect, it is everything and oh my God this man is going to be _my_ husband!

Eventually our lower bodies part, with Michael continuing to hold me against his chest. His heart beat is so strong and loud against our now quiet surroundings.

"Pretty good, huh?" he says.

I smile. "I'll say."

"I've got some bad news for you though." he continues. "The ring is the only thing I can get you for Christmas. I spent everything I had on it."

This makes me laugh like a hyena.

"What? I'm not joking!"

I laugh even harder. "Michael...believe me when I say that there is no present on Earth or indeed, the entire universe, that could top you proposing to me!"

Michael lets out a relieved sigh.

"But I'm not sure Isabel will feel the same way when you tell her that you haven't bought her anything..."

Relief immediately gives way to pure horror.

"Oh God no! Isn't that stupid fucking tree enough for her? That's it, I'm going to hide behind you all Christmas night tomorrow."

"Michael, I'm joking. I promise."

"Absolutely promise?"

"Absolutely promise."

And with that, Michael rolls me over and begins attacking my lips with his once more. Ahhhh bliss.

THE END


	6. Chapter 6

Author: Fehrian/Zfehrian  
Rating: Hmm Maybe Teen?  
Summary: Christmas with the Guerin's, 2007 Year 5- It's a x-mas challenge Here's the Challenge, Year 5 – First Christmas as newlyweds.  
Contact Info: Ya think I'd be here right now if I owned em? P.S just wanted to thank my betas! Drea, Cat, Mag, Leanne and Sarah! Thanks loves!

_Michael: Our First Christmas as newlyweds…this folks is how it went…_

"Michael, Michael, MICHAEL! Get up!" Maria Deluca-Guerin said while waking her lazy alien husband up. She huffed as she struggled and tore his pillow from beneath is head.

"Maria, lemme sleep, come on it's," He grumbled and peeked through half open lids, "8."

"Exactly Michael 8:00! And if we don't hurry we won't get any Christmas trees!"

"Christmas trees, Oh hell not again, why do these things haunt me?" He said growling now at the fact that he had to get up.

"Michael they don't haunt you, you haunt them, besides its Christmas."

"Hey Maria can we get a tombstone?" Michael shouted from the bathroom.

"No Why?"

"Cause if I have to go through with this again, it'll be the death of me."

"How about this tree? A bit too small huh?" Maria said looking at the tree and Michael back and forth. "I don't care Maria just pick any damn tree and let's go." Michael huffed.

"Michael," she turned around and looked at him slowly, "this is Christmas, and since you're Scrooge I have to be the one to make the day enjoyable for at least one of us."

Michael glared at his wife. She's just so damned stubborn! It's Christmas, who gets excited for it!? Well besides Isabel and Maria who else!?

"This is it! This is perfect! Michael, we got our tree!" Maria said while jumping up and down excitedly. The employee that had been helping them all along said He'd be right back to ring up the tree. "Finally…" Was all Michael said.

As they walked towards their car, Maria stopped. "Michael, oh shoots, I forgot my bag you mind putting the tree in the car by yourself? Yes? Thanks space boy!" As she hopped off, Michael stared bewildered at what his life had become.

"From being the stupid boyfriend to the thankful husband, where did I go wrong?" Michael muttered as he walked towards his car.

As he reached the trunk he took his hand out of his pocket surprised by the fact that his car keys weren't there. "You dropped these."

"Here, you dropped these." Said a young voice. Michael turned around to be greeted by a young boy, probably 15-16. He was wearing tattered clothes, brown or black Michael couldn't tell. "Thanks." He could ignore this kid, he could…

"And then Kovalchuck cross-checked Crosby." "Naww! Not Crosby! He's so young!"

"Michael you won't believe what I got." Maria stopped in her tracks once more. She saw in front of her, two men. On the left Michael her husband was standing in front but on the right was…well she didn't know but, he looked like Michael, the Michael Guerin before Liz Parker got shot, the boy who hated everything, the boy who had had only one goal to get back home when he didn't know, home was were your heart is.

"Oh Maria this is J.T., J.T. Maria, _my wife._"

"Hey J.T., how you doing, Michael is the tree installed in the car?"

"Maria the tree isn't a computer program, and yes it's installed in the car." J.T. snickered at the couple, they seemed so…warm.

"Oh ho, Michael you're so funny, just for that you aren't getting any cookies." Maria huffed; she then looked at the boy not even few meters from her. "J.T, what's your family doing for Christmas?"

The boy looked down at his feet. "Well, stale potatoes and chunky gravy with chicken, is our dinner, then they give us thin paper blankets. Fun, honest. Cause after that my friends start a food fight." He said mustering up whatever confidence he could find to look up at the goddess.

Maria stared at Michael who gave her a "look."

"Well J.T., how would you like to spend Christmas with us?"

His jaw dropped, could he? Could he do that to his friends at the orphanage? "No I'm sorry. I can't do that to my friends."

"Well then how about just the rest of the day, after this Michael and I are getting decorations, some food, and you could stay over, eat, then go to your friends."

J.T. thought about it for a while. "Sure."

The boy hopped inside the car; before Maria could leave Michael grabbed her hand and spun her around, "Thank you." He smiled and kissed her. As they pulled back she gave him a small smile. "Anytime Space boy, just don't make it a habit."

"Michael! Pay attention!" Maria said literally stomping her foot, they'd been looking for decorations, and so far Michael the "Czech" Scrooge hadn't helped but make faces behind her back.

"Well, we know who's getting turkey now don't we J.T?" Maria said smiling at the young boy. He beamed with delight; he was in Maria's good books. Score!

Michael growled at the look J.T. gave Maria, it practically _screamed_ "She's Mine." "Come on." The blonde huffed. Men

_At Home_

"MM….I'm stuffed, Michael I swear I gained 10 pounds today just by this meal." "Maria, you're saying that 'cause you made the turkey." He said smirking.

"Cheese head."

"Dorkbutt."

"Turd face!"

"Hurricane." Maria gasped at that and purposely kissed J.T. on the cheek thanking the boy for his help and for Michael, all he needed to hear from his wife was, "_I have my nurses outfit ready but just for that last comment no way.." _

When Maria was upstairs, the guys started watching T.V. They landed on sports recaps. Soon enough time passed by and Michaels heart grew for the lad. He was so much like him, lost, scared and alone.

He slowly broke through the boys many walls, now he knew what Maria had to go through! Damned he was stubborn! The topic then came towards Girls.

"So any chicks you got your eye on?" Michael said leaning over his side of the couch.

"Well, there is this one girl, Stacey. She kinda looks like Maria, porcelain skin, killer smile, the sweete-."

"Hey whoa, ok dude, I'm not that sappy, tell me, you like her or not?" Hell, if he was sappy then he'd be Max.

"I like her, but, she can do better then a f-uck up like me. She had dreams Michael; she can go places. Me? I'll still be rotting here." J.T. now looked at his hands, giving Michael a flashback on how he was the exact same way.

"J, m'boy, I'll tell you the worst piece of crap advice any persons given me, but it's worked, Believe in the Lovers. You like the girl go for it, I know scary as hell, but she likes you then you're set, if not then f-uck it."

J.T. seemed to think about this for hours, until Michael realized Maria. Shit! "Well it's late, gotta go!" He said rushing towards the stairs.

"Hey Michael?" The boy called, oh man! "Yeah." "Thanks." Before Michael left he heard the front door close, he grinned "Good Luck J.T."

"YOU! You suck!" She was livid! The nurses' outfit was supposed to be making him impatient to come upstairs!

"Shush! I'm sorry." I was helping J.T with problems." He held Maria's hands unconsciously leading both of them towards the bed.

"Problems, is he ok? What's wrong?" Michael sighed, once Maria was on her caring train there was no stopping her.

"He's ok, he just, he's like me. He's scared the people he cares about will get hurt because of him. I told him, I told him that he couldn't be scared, he has us. He likes this girl named Stacey. He's going to ask her out tomorrow, as a belated Christmas present."

Michael looked Maria straight into her eyes, they were filled with tears. "You did good space boy, now you get rewarded." He grinned leaned down and kissed her; it soon deepened until she broke the kiss. "Michael. Merry Christmas."

_Michael: That's how it was, this is what happened. J.T and his Stacey friend are going out, thanks to me. _**Maria: cough BECAUSE OF J.Tcough** _Michael: Don't listen to Maria. Now I've got to go, my wife has a date with a Doctor. _**Maria: Michael hurry! Dr. Love doesn't like people who are late! **_Michael: See yah! Merry Christmas._


	7. Chapter 7

Something moved slightly, ever so slightly, deep down in the pit of her womb. Was it possible? Could she be pregnant? Sure. They had decided last night to start trying for a baby. Obviously, Michael's sperm were particularly dedicated to their mission. She could feel the cells multiplying by the second and was sure they were forming a perfect little girl. A girl. She would have soft, brown locks and bright, green eyes. When she closed her eyes she could see her clearly, giggling and dancing. She could already imagine the future: mommy and me swim classes, her first day of school, father daughter dances, her prom, her wedding.

Maria sighed happily and rolled over. Michael grunted as she rolled out of the bed and further away from him. She was standing in front of the bathroom mirror naked and smiling. Her stomach was glowing faintly, the alien kind of glowing, but her entire body had a luminous glow to it.

Slowly, enjoying every moment in its entirety, she turned on the shower. After it had warmed up she pushed aside the ginger bread men shower curtain, stepped inside the tub and let the water wash over her. Unconsciously, she began to hum and then sing, "Sleigh bells ring, are you listening,in the lane, snow is glistening, a beautiful sight, we're happy tonight. Walking in a winter wonderland!"

"Hi," she whispered as Michael's arms wrapped around her from behind. She leaned back into him and sighed happily again.

"Hi."

He began kissing her neck and let his hand slide slowly down her stomach.

"Merry Christmas," Maria said.

"Mmmm. Yeah. Merry Christmas."

"We have to be at Max and Liz's in an hour," Maria moaned. She wanted to tell him about her suspicions, no they weren't suspicions she knew she was definitely pregnant, but she also wanted to wait. She was torn between telling him now before they went to spend the holiday with their friends or waiting until tonight when they could truly celebrate their gift.

"I know. I figured we could try again before we leave," Michael suggested, even as he slipped two fingers between her legs.

"Well…god that feels good," Maria moaned. "Oh no!"

"What?"

Maria quickly pulled away and pushed the shower curtain back. She was in such a rush that she accidently ripped the curtain down when she jumped out of the tub, but she managed to make it to the toilet just in time.

"Jesus."

Michael turned off the water and quickly climbed out of the tub. He grabbed a towel from the rack and dropped down besides Maria, who still had her head inside the bowl. He carefully wrapped the towel around her slim frame and began rubbing her back soothingly.

"Maria?"

"I'm okay," she answered into the bowl. She pushed herself away from the toilet and leaned back on her knees.

"Why didn't you tell me you were sick?" Michael frowned.

"I'm not," Maria replied. She took a deep breath and then another. That tiny movement in her womb was now sloshing back and forth like a row boat caught in a hurricane.

"Maria if you're not sick…"

"I'm pregnant," she answered before he could continue.

"Preg…already?!"

"Oh," she moaned, as she leaned forward again.

"Wow," Michael whispered. She was so little, how could she possibly have that much inside of her?

"Are you crying?" he asked. "Does your stomach hurt? Is there something wrong with the baby?"

"No," Maria sobbed. "I just hate…" she sniffled and then gagged, "…this feeling."

"Oh," Michael answered. He didn't really know what to do or say. During the last nine years he had never seen her sick _and_ crying. She had a few head colds and of course he had seen her cry, but the one time he remembered her having a stomach bug was in eleventh grade and she insisted that he not come over to visit her. So he did the only thing he could, continued rubbing her back slowly in small circles.

After a few more minutes Maria sat back and sighed.

"I think I'm okay," she said. She pushed herself off the floor and to her feet with a little of Michael's help.

"Are you sure?" he asked, as he guided her over to the sink.

"I'll be great as soon as I brush my teeth," Maria chuckled slightly. "I killed the ginger bread men," she added, frowning at the shower curtain.

"So, are you sure? About you know…" Michael said, gesturing with his hands toward her flat stomach.

"Positive," Maria replied, her head bouncing up and down to emphasis her conviction.

"Awesome," Michael gulped supportively.

"Maybe we shouldn't go."

"We have to go, Michael."

"Is there a written rule somewhere?" Michael asked. Although Maria seemed fine now he was worried it wouldn't last. He had heard somewhere that morning sickness wasn't restricted solely to the morning hours and that it could creep up at anytime.

Truthfully, he'd rather stay home and lay in bed with Maria all day, but he had a feeling that was one Christmas wish that wouldn't be fulfilled.

"It's an unwritten rule," Maria replied. "We spend our holidays with our family. We can stay in bed tomorrow," Maria said reading his mind.

"Alright, but if you start feeling sick we're coming home," Michael replied.

"Deal. Can you grab the presents on the couch and put them in the trunk?" Maria requested. She was wrapping up the plate of Christmas cookies she was bringing over to Max and Liz's house and routinely wiping down the counter.

"Yeah, are you going to be okay alone?" Michael asked.

Maria smiled and turned around to look at him.

"Michael, I'm pregnant not on suicide watch," she answered, her smile growing, but her words a little sarcastic. Michael was always protective, but in the last hour he must have asked her fifty times if she was okay. She loved him, but if he didn't stop she might just crack under the pressure and constant attention. So, she let a little sarcasm coat her words. He got the point and went to fetch the gifts.

Once he was out the door, Maria lost herself in her thoughts. Her body was clearly telling her that this would be a _normal_ alien pregnancy, extremely short. They had so much to do before the baby was born. How long before she looked like a beached whale and was unable to lift herself, never mind a laundry basket? When would she have put in for leave at work?

"Are you sure you want to go?" Michael asked, again, and interrupting her frantic thoughts.

"I'm starving and the only thing we have ready to eat is these cookies, which aren't good for the baby," Maria explained logically.

"Okay," Michael replied, still not convinced it was a good idea to go.

"Ready?"

"Yeah."

"Wait!"

"What?" Michael asked. He was immediately by Maria's side, bumping into the corner of the counter on the way, but not noticing the sharp pain. He placed one hand on her back and one on her stomach. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine," she answered, shaking him off gently. "Are we going to tell everyone about the baby?" Maria asked anxiously.

"Oh," Michael said relieved, "I don't know." Michael shrugged and unwrapped the platter of cookies, as he grabbed a bottle of Tabasco sauce from the cupboard, but before he could grab it Maria slapped his hand away from the cookies and rewrapped them.

"Maybe we should wait," Maria suggested.

"Okay," Michael said, still frowning at being denied a cookie.

"But maybe we should have Max take a look, you know," Maria added. "So then we would have to tell everyone because Liz and Isabel would be so mad if we told Max before them and…" Maria rambled.

"I can take a look," Michael interjected.

"Really?" Maria asked with an excited smile.

"I've never had a problem connecting with you, so I shouldn't have a problem with connecting to our baby," Michael explained a little impatiently.

"Michael, Max has done it before, so I just…" Maria tried to explain. "I want you to do it," she confirmed.

"Come here," he answered, his tone warmer.

Maria shuffled a few inches closer, pressing her body flush against his. Michael snaked his hand in between their bodies and under Maria's sweater. His hand was cold from going out to the car and Maria flinched slightly.

"I should have bought you gloves for your stocking," Maria commented.

"Gloves are for girls," Michael grunted. "Let me concentrate."

"Okay."

A sudden rush of energy coursed through their bodies as the connection was formed. Maria felt her essence being pulled from her own body and pushed into Michael's. A tear ran down her cheek as she felt Michael connecting to their daughter for the first time and she could feel a smile on someone's lips, maybe everyone's.

"Whoa."

"She's cool, huh?" Maria asked as she leaned forward and buried her face in his neck.

"She's hungry!" Michael exclaimed.

"I told you I was starving," Maria giggled.

"She's beautiful," Michael murmured. He still had one hand under her sweater and above their child, the other was tangled in her hair and cupping her neck.

"I love you."

"I love you too," Michael answered without a pause, "we should stay home."

"We're going," Maria replied firmly.

"We could order a pizza," Michael suggested hopefully, "or Chinese."

"Michael," Maria giggled as she pulled away. She handed him the platter of cookies before he could protest again and led the way into the living room and out the front door.

Only a minute after taking off out of the driveway Maria grabbed Michael's arm tightly and gasped.

"Are we going to tell them?" Maria asked again.

"I don't know," Michael shrugged. "It's up to you."

"No. No. It's a decision we both need to make," Maria insisted.

Michael sighed, "Okay. I think we should wait a little while."

"I want to tell them."

"Okay."

"Okay?" Maria asked. "You're agreeing with me."

Michael smirked as he turned the wheel left onto Max and Liz's road.

"Are you trying to pick a fight?" he asked suspiciously.

"Not a fight, no. I just want you to be a little more opinionated about our daughter," Maria sighed.

"I told you my opinion!" Michael replied defensively.

"Yeah, but you didn't stand up for your opinion!" Maria retorted.

"Fine! We're not telling them!" Michael shot back.

"You can't tell me what to do!" Maria shouted.

Michael was about to reply, but he stopped himself, just barely. He took a deep breath and tried to regain his control.

"Maria, we're here," Michael announced calmly. He turned the key to turn off the engine and pulled it out. He sat back in his seat and looked at Maria cautiously.

"I'm not blind."

"I don't want to fight, not tonight and not here."

"You could have stayed home," Maria replied coldly.

After a few moments of silence Maria reached her hand out towards the ignition. She touched it lightly for a half second before the car roared to life. She pulled back quickly, her face panicked.

"Holy shit," Michael whispered.

"We should go in," Maria replied after another minute had passed.

"But…"

"We're not telling them, not yet."

As Michael and Maria stepped in the Evan's household they were overwhelmed by the smell of Christmas. Hot cocoa and cinnamon assaulted their senses in the most pleasant way.

"Merry Christmas!"

"Merry Christmas! Oh, Liz you look beautiful!" Maria exclaimed, while taking in the brunettes burgundy cocktail dress.

"Thanks, so do you! You look…really happy," Liz said brightly.

"'Tis the season," Maria laughed.

"Maxwell."

"Merry Christmas Michael," Max answered with a friendly pat on the shoulder.

"Maria! Michael!" Isabel greeted them from the living room.

Kyle shared a look with Michael that told him the Nazi was in full swing, well it was a combination of the look and the eight foot strand of popcorn garland Kyle was _still_ adding to.

Another perfect holiday…

In the Evan's kitchen, Max was basting the enormous turkey he temporarily pulled out of the oven; Kyle was chopping up fresh vegetables for the salad; and Michael as dicing butternut squash and sweet potatoes that needed to be boiled.

"So Ken has been riding my ass all week long and then…" Kyle said. He was telling the guys about his boss' holiday attitude while they worked on the Christmas dinner.

"Whoa!" Kyle said as he backed away quickly form the counter.

"Sorry," Michael mumbled. He picked up a rag from the counter and began cleaning the broken eggs off the floor, table, countertop, _and_ cupboards.

"Um, Michael, what's going on?" Max asked as he and Kyle pitched in with the cleaning.

"Nothing," Michael muttered.

"You've been quiet all night, more than usual," Max responded.

"Surlier too," Kyle joked, mostly.

"It's nothing," Michael insisted. He went back to chopping the vegetables, with a little more force created from his embarrassment of exploding the eggs in front of the guys. He hadn't had issues controlling his powers in a very long time.

"Michael…" Max prodded.

Michael looked up and saw both men staring anxiously at him. He shrugged casually and continued to chop.

"Just because we're in the kitchen doesn't mean we need to gab like girls," Michael retorted.

"If you don't tell us I'll brew a pot of tea," Kyle warned lightly.

Michael glared at him, but conceded.

"Maria's pregnant," he answered succinctly.

"Whoa," both guys answered in unison.

"Yeah," Michael agreed.

"So you're freaked about it," Kyle said, "because it wasn't planned."

"No."

"Then what's with the exploding dairy?" Max questioned with a smirk.

"We started _trying_ last night," Michael explained. "I didn't think it would, you know, happen so quickly. Plus, suddenly Maria's starting cars and sparking out her fingers and throwing up at the most inconvenient times and eating like a trucker desperate for a truck stop diner," Michael babbled for a minute, before clamming up again. He continued chopping rhythmically, but he wasn't hitting anything except the cutting board.

Max and Kyle shared a smirk at his expense. Michael Guerin was starting to sound an awful lot like his wife.

"She has powers?" Max asked surprised.

"I guess," Michael frowned.

"Or maybe the baby does," Kyle suggested.

"Have you thought about what you're going to do about things like school?" Max asked casually.

"Well," Michael answered thoughtfully. "I figure Maria can teach her about music and history…"

"History?" Kyle asked surprised.

"She's obsessed with documentaries about the middle ages and earlier," Michael explained with a chuckle. "Then Liz can teach her science," Michael continued. "I figured you could teach her math and you could teach her about…" Michael paused thoughtfully at Kyle, "mechanical stuff? " He shrugged, "It could be useful."

"Isabel will want to teach her something too," Max reminded him.

"Arts and crafts?" Michael wondered.

Max nodded his head.

"Good idea. What about you?" Kyle asked.

"Life lessons mostly," Michael smirked. "I'll work with her on her powers and maybe teach her to paint."

"Guess you have it all figured out," Max smiled.

"Yeah and hey if either of you tell Maria I told you, I'll kill you," Michael threatened, "and that means no telling Liz or Isabel either. You know how the girls are."

"Couldn't you just use your powers to finish this?" Maria whined. She had the right to whine, her fingers were sore and one of her thumbs had split from the nail.

"That's cheating," Isabel answered sternly.

"Right," Maria sighed.

Suddenly Maria had a brilliant idea. She apparently had powers, or at least temporary use of powers. So why not put them to a good use? After experimenting for a few minutes, she had the popcorn practically jumping from her bowl on to the string.

"Maria!" Liz gasped. She was sitting to the left of the experimenting blonde and had caught rapid movement out of the corner of her eye taking place in Maria's bowl of popcorn. "You're cheating!" she accused.

Maria suddenly felt like she was in Mrs. Hardy's sixth grade math class again. Liz never ratted her out, but she would give her the occasional dirty look and cover her paper protectively.

"No I'm not," Maria responded defensively. She quickly dropped the strand of popcorn into the bowl and looked at Isabel for some support. _She_ couldn't possibly be cheating, as far as they knew.

"How?" Liz asked her eyes wide and worried. The only reason she and Kyle had powers was because they were both shot and then brought back from the brink of death.

"Shh…" Maria said. There was no point lying because Liz was obviously sure of what she had seen. "Okay I'll tell you, but don't tell the guys. I don't want to fight with Michael tonight."

"Okay," they both agreed anxiously.

The group huddled in a tight circle around the coffee table, leaning in close to one another like co-conspirators.

"We just found out today that we're pregnant," Maria whispered.

"Congratulations!" Liz whispered both loudly and excitedly.

"Oh my god, that is wonderful!" Isabel added.

Immediately both girls jumped from their seats and pulled Maria into a group hug.

"Yeah, but you may not want to squeeze too hard," Maria warned as a small wave nausea washed over her. Both girls got the hint and immediately pulled away, still smiling.

"So have you thought about names yet?"

Maria's stomach flopped and her mind began to race about yet another thing that needed to be done.

The car ride home was silent, comfortable and thoughtful, not cold. It was only a little after nine, but they were both exhausted, maybe it was the turkey or maybe it was the popcorn and cranberry strands they were forced to help make for the last _three_ hours.

Maria yawned and laid her head on the cold window glass. She stared up at the clear night sky and began counting the stars.

After bringing their gifts inside, well after Michael brought the gifts inside, they sat out on the front stoop, each with a steaming cup of hot cocoa.

"Show me yours again," Maria murmured.

"See that little cluster of stars there," Michael said pointing towards the east, "it's the brightest one."

"It's the prettiest one."

"Are you freaked?" he asked quietly, still staring at his star.

"Yes," Maria sighed. "We have so much to do before the baby comes. How are we ever going to think up a name in less than four months?"

Michael turned to stare at her, slightly surprised.

"That's not what I meant," Michael replied.

Maria looked up from her cup and arched one eyebrow.

"What did you mean?" she asked still confused.

Michael looked back at the night sky before explaining.

"The powers," he said simply.

"Oh…no," Maria replied quickly.

"Really?"

"Why should I be freaked?" Maria asked.

"You have _powers_," Michael emphasized with exasperated hand gestures.

"Are you freaked?" asked Maria.

"No…yes."

"Michael, I don't have powers. The baby has powers. I knew it was a possibility before we decided to start a family. I figured you did too," Maria added with a chuckle.

"Well, yeah, but I thought they would show up later. Plus, Zan didn't have powers, so…" Michael argued.

"I love you," Maria whispered. "I hate that you can't be who you really are because people are ignorant and I know how hard it has been for you to be different all of your life. I'm thankful for your powers because I know you can protect yourself and I'm glad our little girl has powers, so she can protect herself. Plus, that star up there is a big part of you and it's a big part of her. I love all of you and I love all of her," Maria finished.

Michael wrapped an arm around her and placed a soft kiss on her temple.

"I love you too."

"Oh no!" Maria moaned.

She jumped to her feet and ran inside before Michael could react, but he quickly pushed himself off the steps and ran after her.

After ten minutes Maria leaned back and wiped her mouth with the back of her hand.

"I hate you," she mumbled. Her cheeks were streaked with tears again and all the color was drained from her face.

"I hate me too," Michael agreed guiltily. "Come on let's get into bed."

"Grab the bucket in the closet," Maria answered as she walked to the counter to brush her teeth.

"Why?" Michael asked confused.

"In case I can't make it in here," Maria grumbled.

"Right…"

"Molly."

"Excuse me," Maria replied angrily. She turned over to face her husband accusingly.

"I like the name Molly," Michael clarified.

"Oh," Maria answered without apologizing for her implied accusation. "Molly's pretty. What about Abigail?"

"Abby," Michael said thoughtfully, "I like that one too."

"Christina?"

"No, people will call her Tina," Michael answered.

Michael pulled Maria closer to him and stroked her stomach unconsciously.

"Hannah?" Michael suggested.

"Ha no," Maria answered immediately.

"Why not?" he asked confused.

"There was this girl in my first grade class named Hannah," Maria explained. "She used to eat crayons and paste, everything that wasn't supposed to be edible, but she had the nerve to make fun of my clothes because they were hand me downs."

"Hannah is a bitch's name, got it," Michael finished.

"What about Ariel?" Maria asked hopefully.

"Seriously?"

"It's a pretty name," Maria said defensively.

"Yes, if she were part fish, but she's part alien," Michael scoffed.

"I love that movie. Hey!" Maria cried.

"What?" Michael asked a little startled by Maria's sudden outburst. It was late and they had been whispering until now, not because they were afraid of waking someone, but just because at night whispering is what you do.

"Now we can rent Disney movies and you can't complain!" Maria whispered loudly and excitedly.

"Great," Michael chuckled sarcastically.

Maria smiled and snuggled deeper into his body. Slowly, she turned around in his arms and gently placed a kiss on his chin. Michael leaned in and gently pressed his lips to her. Then he shifted, positioning himself above her and silently thanked her for always sleeping in the nude. He couldn't count the number of times he had told her he loved her, solely citing that very reason. Michael felt his body heating up quickly, but suddenly he pulled away.

"Can we do this?" he asked.

"Of course we can," Maria laughed.

"What if… what if she knows?" Michael whispered, so the baby wouldn't hear him.

"Michael, she's growing fast, but not that fast. I don't think she'll have any scarring memories of the womb and her ears aren't even formed yet," Maria explained with an amused smirk.

"Okay," Michael answered, but he was still hesitant.

"Um, Michael," Maria started, "we forgot to exchange presents…"

"Oh, yeah," Michael laughed. Michael started rolling out of the bed.

"No," Maria said, pulling him back towards her, "we can do it in the morning. Besides I think we both already got the best gift today."

"Yes," Michael agreed with a huge grin, "you got joyous morning sickness and I got a healthy fear of sex."

Maria giggled loudly and Michael started tickling her mercilessly.

All in all it was another Merry Christmas for Santa and Snowflake.

**The End**


	8. Chapter 8

**Title:** This life

**Author:** DrankoftheSnapple (Stacy)

**Rating:** PG

**Stage:** Year seven

**Summary:** Micheal and Maria experience their first Christmas as parents, as only they could.

**Disclaimer**: Roswell doesn't belong to me or any of it's blah, blah, blah, blah. Do these annoy anyone else?

**Author's note**: This is my first attempt at writing anything close to fluff. I also made the banner.

**Part One**

The air in the room was crisp, with a hint of dryness lingering in the room. The scent of evergreen floated through the room, awakening Micheal. The bedroom felt oddly quiet, a feeling of alarm working through his body. He rolled over to his back, battleling rumpled sheets and the heavy comforter of Maria's.

When he finally made it to his back, a piercing pain made its way through the small of his back. Reaching behind him, Micheal found the culprit, revealing it before his face. Micheal shook his head, he should have known better. In all actually he knew what it was before he looked at it. It was what he had tripped over, stubbed his toe on, and the time he cut his heel….. his nemesis…. Mr. Spaceboy. His daughter Molly's stuffed alien doll, that he had bought her the day she was born.

Hindsight was a real kick in the rear end , when it came to this particular toy. He couldn't count how many times he had injured himself on the plush toy. Also, on the other hand it was the only toy of his daughter's, that she hadn't blown up, changed the color, or totally changed the material of. It was almost sacred to Molly; perhaps she knew what she was, even if she was only eight months old.

Micheal sighed, as he swung his legs over the side of the bed, battleling the sheets in the process. He looked over to the empty side of the bed, where his wife usually resided. Her pillows were still creased by her laying on them that night of rest. Stretching slightly, he noticed that Molly wasn't in the play pen, that Maria had make shifted into a crib for her. Her blankets were tossed about, and twisted. Molly slept like her mother, twisting and turning till her body was twisted in them like a human pretzel.

Micheal could hear the faint sounds, of giggling and Maria's voice. A small smile spread across his face, as he stood up, still clutching Mr. S in his hand. He made his way out of their bedroom as he walked through the hall, sleep wearing off. He poked his head into Molly's nursery as he passed by it. They weren't in there, it was still clean. There were many things about Maria, and one was that she was a big kid. Anytime she and Molly played, the room turned into a disaster zone…. Not that he was any better.

He let out a slight laugh as he made his way into the den, where Molly's laughter increased. When he made his way into the room, Molly was seated in her high chair, the back of it facing him. Her arms were rising, trying to catch the tinsel, which her mother was sprinkling on her. Maria laughed with her daughter, as she tickled the baby's face with the shiny material. Micheal took in the bonding moment, as he stepped fully into the room. When he looked around, he was struck with a sense of horror. The room that he had left in minimal seasonal décor the night before, a decorated tree, three stockings on the fire mantle, and a reef, was now the place nightmares were made out of. He looked to his wife, who was still oblivious to his presence as she tacked up Christmas cards, beside a couple of disturbing nut crackers….the name alone scared the holy hell out of him.

Molly felt her fathers' presence, as she started to chatter to him. He walked over to her, messing her light colored hair, as he layed the stuffed alien onto the tray that was littered with cheese crackers.

"It looks like Santa puked in here."

Maria whipped around, finally acknowledging his presence.

"Hey, honey!! Happy almost Christmas!!!"

"Where are the pod people so I can kick the crap out of them for kidnapping my wife?"

Maria rolled her eyes, "What are you talking about? Is it a bad thing that I'm hyped about Christmas?"

"Yes when you turn the house into Santa's playground from Hell."

"Don't say that," Maria pointed to Molly, "Little ears."

Micheal laughed, "You weren't concerned about what she heard when you were pregnant with her."

Maria scoffed, "Don't be dirty!!"

"Fine. Back to this monstrosity, what the…..heck….happened here?"

Maria waved her hand around the room, "I just thought it could use….more."

"I can understand more, I'm even ok with a bit of excess….but this is……INSANE!!!"

"You shouldn't yell like that, I read that children at Molly's age are absorbing the surroundings around them at a fast rate."

"See, you shouldn't read it's dangerous. You start thinking for yourself, and thoughts appear, then you start having ideas…."

Maria placed her hands on her hips," That's not funny."

Micheal sighed, "Come on, it was a little funny."

"Isabel said you wouldn't understand."

"See, that's worse than reading. Isabel isn't herself around this time, she morphs into this high powered, evil Martha Stewart….wait Martha's already evil….anyway….with POWERS!!!!"

Maria shook her head, "It's not that bad."

"You have to fight her Maria; you have to fight the Christmas Nazi."

"Micheal…."

"When I went to bed, you were perfectly normal. The den was decorated enough, and now it's like ground zero for the Macy's Day parade."

"I was thinking about Molly, and how this was her first Christmas."

"Maria, she doesn't care, she's not even one yet."

Maria walked over to the high chair, picking Molly up, as she shoved a cheese cracker in her mouth.

"I don't care, I want this to be memorable for her, besides, Molly isn't like other kids. How do you know, that she's not totally conscious of what's going on."

Micheal looked to his daughter, as she tried to shove one of her crackers up her nose.

"Yeah Maria, she's not like other kids her age."

Micheal shoved his hands through his hair, as he noticed Molly reaching for a brightly colored glass ornament lying on the ground. Maria was still chattering on and on about how Molly would only get one Christmas, as he watched her dark eyes focusing on the particular object. Micheal, switched back and forth to his daughter, and the ground. Without warning, the glass ball rose up into the air, and started to spin.

"Maria?"

"What?!"

"Without turning Molly, I want you to turn around."

"Why?"

"Would you just do it?"

Maria sighed as she turned around to come face to face with the floating ornament. The speed continued to climb until, it was moving so fast it appeared to be standing almost still. Maria looked to Micheal with concerned eyes, as he marveled at it. He reached out seconds before it drove into the nearest wall, shattering into pieces. Molly gave a giggle, as she clapped in joy. Maria cleared her throat, as she switched the baby to her other arm.

"Maybe, it is a little too much."

"Thank you."

**Part Two**

Maria put Molly down into her bed, her chubby fingers holding onto her hot pink bottle. Her golden brown eyes fluttered open before they closed once again. Once, she was positioned fully in the comfort of her blankets, she gurgled as she rolled to her side, sucking on her bottle. Maria placed her hands on the top of her head, as she sighed deeply. She limply fell onto her bed, her indention reforming. She looked to the ceiling; the crème colored paint looked down onto her. There were times, when she wasn't sure she would be a good mom. However, the fact that her child would be a hybrid never crossed her mind.

Sure, she knew that the baby being half of Micheal would have some 'gifts'. Molly had even blown things up when she was upset, imagine the plays dates. There was one in particular that Maria would like to forget. She had taken Molly, to one of those 'Mommy and Me' classes and Molly had gotten into a tug of war match with a little boy over her stuffed alien, Mr.Spaceboy. After a few minutes, Molly had gotten fed up with the little boy and had melted the metal truck he was holding in the other hand. Of course no one but Maria had seen but, she was afraid to let Molly around other kids ever since. Micheal on the other hand was, surprizingly proud of his daughter, because she had, as he put it[ikicked the other kid's butt[/i.

Aside from that, Maria could quite possibly deal with melting toys and things that went boom. However, trying to cover up things spinning in the air was a totally different matter. She was pretty sure that the room moms would notice a gravity defying teddy bear. Maria closed her eyes trying to clear her head, as the bed creaked and lowered, announcing another person. She kept her eyes close as a light kiss was placed on her forehead.

"What's going on….really?"

Maria opened her eyes, "What're you getting at?"

"You don't think you're the only one that can read the other…do you?"

Maria sat up, smoothing her tangled hair down, "I have no idea what you're talking about?"

"I know you, Maria. You only go all manic, when something's wrong. You're like your mother, in that way."

Maria whipped her head around, almost hitting him in the face with her long locks.

"Looking for the firing squad are we?"

A smirk rounded his sharp features, "You can punish me later…issues now."

Maria sighed, as she settled into her pillow beside her, clutching it to her chest.

"I just want Molly, to have a normal life."

"Where did you come up with that?"

"Last week at the 'Mommy and Me' classes. All the moms were so perfect and organized. They all look like they're from[iHome and Garden[/i."

"They're also all medicated."

"The results the same and here I am the daughter of a hippie, and a dead beat. How special can I be?"

Micheal placed his hands on Maria's face, cradling her soft skin against his rougher kind.

"Let me tell you something. We're never going to be normal, which isn't a bad thing. One thing I do know is that you are the most special person I know. You saved me. You're the only person who truly knows me, and I would give up everything for my two girls."

"What about her, little power outbursts she likes to show."

"We'll deal with it."

Maria turned her head slightly to kiss, Micheal's hand.

"Feel better?"

Maria nodded, "Yeah."

"I didn't sound all mushy like Max, did I?"

Maria chuckled, "No, it was good."

* * *

**Part Three**

The den was now an abyss of wrapping paper and ribbons. Maria leaned back into Micheal, as they sat on the floor, watching Molly tangle herself in the flurry of ribbons she was playing with. She was chattering to the ribbons, as if scolding them for not doing as she said. A pile of Christmas toys, were forgotten, as the little one inspected every box and bow. Maria looked around room, giggling to herself.

"I see, you left up all the crazy stuff, I did yesterday."

"Yeah, well I thought I'd let you have one day of sanity."

"Don't you mean insanity?"

"No."

Maria elbowed Micheal in the ribs, "Shut up."

"Tisk, tisk, little ears."

Maria rolled her eyes, "Don't make me hit you with one of those nut crackers; I know how they freak you out."

Micheal held out his hands, "A truce, then….for now."

Maria turned around, planting a kiss on Micheal's lips, "You're playing dirty now."

Maria smirked, "Maybe we can work on giving Molly a playmate, for next Christmas."

Micheal's eyes rounded, "Her room is ready, now."

**THE END.**


End file.
